ll 


DANIEL 


THE    BELOVED. 


BY  THE 


REV.  WILLIAM   M.  TAYLOR,  D.D., 

MINISTER    OF    THE    BROADWAY    TABERNACLE,   NEW    YORK    CITY; 

AUTHOR    OF 

"  PETER  THE  APOSTLE,"  "  DAVID,  KING  OF  ISRAEL," 

"ELIJAH    THE    PROPHET,"  ETC. 


JV£JV    YORK: 

HARPER    &    BROTHERS,    PUBLISHERS, 

FRANKLIN     SQUARE. 
1878. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1878,  by 

Harper    &    Brothers, 

In  the  OfEce  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  V/ashington. 


ERRATUM. 

On  page  17S,  loth  line  from  the  top,  for  "rejected  on,"  read  "re- 
jected without." 


PREFACE. 


THE  story  of  Daniel  has  long  been  a  favorite  with  chil- 
dren ;  but,  while  giving  due  prominence  to  those  chap- 
ters in  his  history  which  are  particularly  attractive  to  the 
young,  I  have  sought  specially  to  emphasize  the  lessons 
which  it  teaches  to  all  who  are  engaged  in  business  or  in 
public  life. 

It  was  no  part  of  my  intention,  at  first,  to  attempt  any  ex- 
position of  the  prophetic  portions  of  the  Book  of  Daniel ; 
but,  as  I  advanced,  I  found  them  so  intimately  connected 
with  his  character  and  position  that  it  would  have  been  im- 
possible to  form  a  correct  estimate,  either  of  the  man  or  of 
his  influence,  without  taking  them  into  account.  I  have 
therefore  given  some  attention  to  the  visions  which  were 
either  interpreted  by  Daniel  or  given  to  him  ;  but  I  have  no 
ambition  to  set  up  for  an  apocalyptic  oracle,  and  have  con- 
cerned myself  mainly  with  extracting  and  illustrating  those 
principles  of  permanent  importance  which  seem  to  me  to 
underlie  the  prophecies  themselves. 

For  the  rest,  I  lay  this  book  where  I  have  laid  the  others, 
at  my  Master's  feet,  and  pray  that  he  may  use  it  for  the  fos- 
tering and  encouragement  of  Biblical  exposition  in  the  pul- 
pits, and  of  Biblical  study  in  the  closets,  of  the  land. 

New  York,  5  IK-st  Thirty-fifth  Street. 


CON  TEN  TS. 


Pace 

I.  Daniel  at  College 7 

II.  The  Forgotten  Dreain 24 

III.  The  Dreajn  Recovered  and  Interpreted. 40 

IV.  The  Non-confonnists  of  Babylon 56 

V,  Pride  Abased. 72 

VI.  Belshazzar's  Feast 90 

VII.  Daniel  in  the  Den 105 

VIII.  The  Vision  of  the  Four  Beasts 123 

IX.    Vision  of  the  Ram  and  the  He-goat. 144 

X.  The  Seventy  Weeks 164 

XI.  The  Vision  on  the  Banks  of  the  Hiddekel. 181 

XII.   The  Epilogue  to  the  Visio7i 206 

XIII.  The  Character  of  Daniel 222 

INDEX 239 


DANIEL  THE    BELOVED. 


I. 

DANIEL  AT  COLLEGE. 
Daniel  i.,  1-21. 


IN  entering  upon  a  short  series  of  discourses  on  the  life 
of  Daniel,  I  must  take  for  granted  the  genuineness  and 
authenticity  of  the  book  which  has  been  called  by  his  name. 
I  am  aware,  indeed,  that  the  predictions  contained  in  this 
portion  of  Scripture  are  so  minute,  and  have  been  so  exact- 
ly fulfilled,  that  many  have  not  hesitated  to  affirm  that  they 
must  have  been  written  after  the  occurrence  of  the  events  to 
which  they  refer.  But  the  raising  of  objections  by  adversa- 
ries has  only  had  the  effect  of  establishing  beyond  the  pos- 
sibility of  doubt  the  claims  which  have  been  put  forth  on 
behalf  of  this  book  by  all  earnest  believers  in  its  credibility. 
Those  who  wish  to  see  what  rationalistic  writers  have  had 
to  say  against  it,  from  the  days  of  Porphyry,  in  the  third 
century,  down  to  those  of  the  Essayists  and  Reviewers  of 
the  present  generation,  and  how  their  arguments  have  been 
successfully  repelled,  even  on  the  ground  of  criticism,  may 
consult  Dr.  Pusey's  "Lectures   on  Daniel  the   Prophet,"* 

*  "Daniel  the  Prophet.     Nine  Lectures,  delivered  in  the  Divinity 
School  of  the  University  of  Oxford,"  by  the  Rev.  E.  B.  Pusey,  D.D. 


8  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

while  such  as  have  not  access  to  that  masterly  work,  by  one 
of  the  most  accomplished  Hebrew  scholars  iu  the  world, 
may  find  an  excellent  summary  of  both  sides  of  the  argu- 
ment in  the  introduction  to  ]\Ir,  Barnes's  commentary  on 
Daniel.* 

But,  satisfactory  as  all  such  treatises  are,  the  humble 
Christian  needs  no  stronger  assurance  of  the  genuineness 
of  this  portion  of  the  Old  Testament  canon  than  that  which 
is  afforded  by  the  fact  that  our  Lord  himself  refers  to  Dan- 
iel by  name,  and  makes  special  allusion  to  his  predictions  in 
his  own  prophecy  concerning  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem.! 
This  is  enough.  We  believe  in  him  who  was  and  is  him- 
self"///^ truth^''  and  with  us  his  word  is  a  termination  of  all 
strife. 

Without  further  preliminary,  therefore,  we  proceed  to  our 
labor,  anticipating  from  it  both  the  purest  pleasure  and  the 
richest  profit. 

In  the  days  of  Josiah,  King  of  Judah,  the  sovereignty  of 
Western  Asia  was  a  matter  of  fierce  contention  between  the 
monarchies  of  Egypt  and  Babylon,  and  the  southern  portion 
of  Palestine,  as  lying  between  the  two  opponents,  was  placed 
in  a  position  of  peculiar  difficulty.  The  Jewish  kingt  re- 
fused to  allow  Pharaoh  Necho  a  passage  through  his  domin- 
ions, and  went  out  to  Megiddo,  on  the  plain  of  Esdraelon,  to 
oppose  his  progress,  with  his  army.  Here  his  forces  were 
routed,  and  he  himself  was  slain.  He  was  succeeded  by  his 
younger  son  Jehoahaz,  but,  probably  because  he  shared  his 
father's  antipathy  to  the  Egyptians,  Necho  deposed  him  at 
the  end  of  three  months,  and  placed  his  elder  brother  Elia- 
kim  on  the  throne,  changing  his  name  into  Jehoiakim. 


*  "Notes  on  the  Book  of  Daniel,"  by  Rev.  Albert  Barnes. 

t  See  Matt,  xxiv.,  15,  16. 

I  2  Kings  xxiii.,  29,  30  ;  2  Chron.  xxxiii.,  20-24. 


Daniel  at  College.  9 

This  monarch  began  to  reign  somewhere  about  609  b.c. 
He  was,  of  course,  a  vassal  of  the  Egyptian  empire,  and  had 
to  lay  upon  his  people  heavy  taxes  for  the  payment  of  trib- 
ute to  the  conquerors,  in  addition  to  those  which  were  re- 
quired for  the  ordinary  expenses  of  his  own  government.* 
In  the  third  year  of  his  reign,  however,  Nabopolassar,  the 
Assyrian  emperor,  gave  a  portion  of  his  army  to  his  son 
Nebuchadnezzar,  who  marched  against  the  Egyptians,  de- 
feated them  at  Carchemish,  and  drove  Pharaoh  Necho  out 
of  Asia.t  Thence  the  conqueror  proceeded  directly  to  Je- 
rusalem, which  he  took  after  a  short  siege. 

At  first,  he  seems  to  have  intended  to  deal  very  summa-» 
rily  with  Jehoiakim,  for  he  bound  him  with  fetters  to  send 
him  away  to  Babylon, J  but  eventually  he  changed  his  mind, 
and  restored  the  crown  to  him  as  a  vassal  of  his  empire. 
Still,  he  took  the  most  valuable  of  the  vessels  that  were  in 
the  temple  of  Jehovah,  and  carried  with  him  to  his  eastern 
capital  several  young  men,  belonging  most  probably  to  the 
principal  families  of  Jerusalem,  that  they  might  be  hostages 
for  the  good  behavior  of  the  rest  of  their  countrymen. § 

Three  years  after  this,  however,  Jehoiakim  rebelled  against 
Nebuchadnezzar,  who,  occupied  with  more  important  affairs, 
left  the  subjugation  of  Palestine  to  the  neighboring  tribes. 
These  ravished  the  whole  country,  and  shut  up  Jehoiakim  in 
Jerusalem  ;||  and  during  this  siege  Jehoiakim  was  slain,  and 
his  unhonored  remains  were  "  buried  with  the  burial  of  an 
ass,"  according  to  the  word  of  the  prophet  Jeremiah. If 

He  was  succeeded  by  Jechonias,  called  also  Jehoiachin, 
who  reigned  only  three  months,  for,  at  the  end  of  that  time, 
Nebuchadnezzar  carried  him  and  all  the  royal  family,  the  re- 


*  2  Kings  xxiii.,  31-35  ;  2  Chron.  xxxvi.,  1-6. 

t  Jer.  xlvi.,  2.  |  2  Chron.  xxxvi.,  6.  §  Dan.  i.,  3. 

II  2  Kings  xxiv.,  2.  ^  Jer.  xxii.,  18, 19  ;  xxxvi.,  30,  31. 

T* 


lo  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

maining  treasures,  the  strength  of  the  army,  and  the  princes, 
and  all  the  more  useful  artisans,  to  Babylon.*  Over  the 
remnant  of  the  kingdom,  the  Assyrian  monarch  made  Zede- 
kiah,  one  of  the  sons  of  Josiah,  king ;  but  in  his  stubborn  self- 
will,  and  against  the  advice  of  Jeremiah,  that  prince  attempt- 
ed, in  the  ninth  year  of  his  reign,  to  assert  his  independence, 
with  the  result  that  Jerusalem  was  again  besieged  and  taken. 
The  king  was  seized,  his  children  were  slain  in  his  sight,  his 
eyes  were  put  out,  and  he  was  led  away,  blind  and  bereaved, 
into  a  foreign  land.f  Nay,  more;  Nebuzar-adan,  the  com- 
mander-in-chief of  the  conquering  army,  utterly  destroyed  the 
holy  city :  "  they  burnt  the  house  of  God,  and  brake  down 
the  wall  of  Jerusalem,  and  burnt  all  the  palaces  thereof  with 
fire,  and  destroyed  all  the  goodly  vessels  thereof.  And  them 
that  escaped  the  sword  carried  he  away  to  Babylon ;  where 
they  were  servants  to  him  and  his  sons  until  the  reign  of  the 
kingdom  of  Persia."|  There  were  thus,  if  I  may  so  express 
it,  three  distinct  instalments  of  captives  carried  away  to  the 
land  of  Babylon :  first,  the  young  men  taken  in  the  third 
year  of  the  reign  of  Jehoiakim  ;  second,  the  large  number 
removed  along  with  Jehoiachin  ;  and,  third,  those  who  ac- 
companied Zedekiah  after  the  Jewish  capital  had  been  laid 
waste. 

Daniel  was  one  of  those  who  were  first  removed ;  and 
with  him  were  three  others,  whose  names  are  specially  re- 
corded, because  they  were  like-minded  with  him,  and  be- 
cause they  afterward  played  no  mean  part  in  maintaining 
their  integrity  at  the  risk  of  all  that  men  commonly  hold 
dear.  Daniel  appears  to  have  been  of  noble  birth,  for  he 
is  spoken  of  as  belonging  to  the  royal  family  ;§   and  at  the 

*  2  Kings  xxiv.,  10-16.     See,  also,  articles  Jehoiakim  and  Jehoia- 
chin, Smith's  "  Bible  Dictionary." 
t  2  Kings  XXV.,  1-7. 
t  2  Chron.  xxxvi.,  19,  20 ;  2  Kings  xxv.,  8-10.  §  Dan.  i.,  3. 


Daniel  at  College.  ii 

time  of  his  removal  to  Babylon,  he  must  have  been  of  a 
very  tender  age.  The  last  verse  of  the  first  chapter  of  his 
book  informs  us  that  he  continued  even  unto  the  first  year 
of  King  Cyrus ;  and  his  latest  vision*  is  dated  in  the  third 
year  of  Cyrus.  Thus  he  lived  in  Babylonia  at  least  three 
years  longer  than  the  seventy  years  of  the  Captivity,  count- 
ing these,  as  many  believe  they  should  be  reckoned,  from  the 
third  year  of  Jehoiakim.  Supposing,  therefore,  that  at  the 
time  of  his  last  vision  he  had  reached  the  venerable  age  of 
eighty-seven,  this  would  make  him  a  boy  of  fourteen  when 
he  was  taken  from  Jerusalem.  This  conjecture  is  somewhat 
confirmed  by  incidental  glimpses  which  we  get  in  classic  au- 
thors into  the  customs  of  Eastern  monarchs.  Thus  Plato,t 
speaking  of  the  Persians,  says,  "After  twice  seven  years  have 
passed,  those  whom  they  call  royal  instructors  receive  the 
boys  to  educate."  Add  three  years,  during  which  we  know 
that  Daniel  and  his  friends  were  under  training,  and  this 
would  bring  him  to  the  age  of  seventeen.  But,  according  to 
Xenophon,  -sixteen  or  seventeen  was  the  age  of  the  adults 
at  which  they  entered  upon  the  king's  service.  If,  there- 
fore, this  supposition  be  accepted,  we  may  conceive  what  an 
affliction  his  departure  from  Jerusalem  would  be  to  his  par- 
ents' hearts,  and  with  what  earnest,  prayerful  solicitude  (for 
his  must  have  been  a  godly  home)  they  would  follow  him  in 
thought  to  Babylon,  and  shield  him  with  their  supplications 
from  the  dangers  and  temptations  to  which  he  would  be  ex- 
posed. And,  as  we  shall  see,  their  holy  training  and  loving 
petitions  were  not  fruitless. 

He  and  his  three  friends  before  alluded  to  were,  with 
others,  chosen  by  Ashpenaz,  the  chief  of  the  eunuchs,  to 
be  trained  in  a  special  royal  seminary  for  the  service  of  the 
king.      They  received  Babylonian  names,  and  were  to  be 

*  Dan.  X.,  I.  t  Pusey's  "Lectures,"  pp.  i6,  17. 


12  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

instructed  in  all  the  learning  of  the  Chaldeans,  so  as  to  be 
fitted  for  posts  of  usefulness  in  the  empire.  Dr.  Kitto  has 
described  a  similar  method  of  procedure  with  young  slaves, 
as  having  been  customary  at  the  Turkish  court  up  to  a  com- 
paratively recent  date.     I  must  quote  his  words  : 

"  The  time  is  still  within  living  memory  when  the  pages 
of  the  seraglio,  the  officers  of  the  court,  as  well  as  the  great- 
er part  of  the  high  functionaries  of  state  and  governors  of 
provinces,  were  originally  boys  of  Christian  parentage,  who 
had  been  taken  captive  in  war,  or  bought,  or  stolen  in  time 
of  peace.  The  finest  and  most  capable  of  these  were  sent 
to  the  palace,  and  placed  under  the  charge  of  the  chief  of 
the  white  eunuchs.  These  lads  were  brought  up  in  the  re- 
ligion of  their  masters,  and  in  a  school  within  the  palace 
they  received  such  complete  instruction  in  Turkish  learning 
and  science  as  it  was  the  lot  of  few  others  to  obtain.  Much 
pains  were  taken  to  teach  them  to  speak  the  Turkish  lan- 
guage with  the  greatest  purity,  as  spoken  at  court.  They 
were  clad  neatly  and  well,  but  temperately  dieted.  They 
slept  in  large  dormitories,  where  there  were  long  rows  of 
beds.  When  they  reached  a  proper  age,  they  were  instruct- 
ed in  military  discipline,  and  it  was  an  aim  to  render  them 
active,  brave,  and  laborious.  Every  one  was  also,  according 
to  the  custom  of  the  country,  taught  some  handicraft  em- 
ployment, to  serve  him  as  a  resource  in  any  time  of  need. 
Their  education  being  completed,  those  who  had  shown 
most  capacity  were  employed  about  the  person  of  the  sov- 
ereign, and  the  rest  were  assigned  to  the  various  offices  of 
the  extensive  establishment  to  which  they  belonged.  In 
due  time  these  able  or  successful  youths  got  advanced  to 
high  court  offices,  which  gave  them  immediate  access  to  the 
royal  person,  an  advantage  which  soon  paved  the  way  to 
their  going  out  on  military  commands,  or  to  take  the  gov- 
ernment of  provinces.     It  has  not  rarely  happened  that  fa- 


Daniel  at  College.  13 

vored  court  officers  have  at  once  stepped  into  the  highest 
offices  of  the  State,  without  having  been  previously  abroad 
in  the  world  as  pachas  or  military  commanders."* 

Daniel  and  his  companions  were,  in  a  word,  the  young 
cadets  of  their  times,  differing  from  their  modern  represent- 
atives mainly  in  this,  that  they  were  captives  deprived,  in 
some  respects,  of  their  liberty,  and  held  for  the  service  of  an 
alien  emperor  in  a  foreign  land. 

The  arrangements  of  the  seminary  or  college,  however, 
were  of  such  a  nature  as  involved  the  Hebrew  youths  in  im- 
mediate difficulty.  The  food  for  the  pupils  was  supplied 
from  the  royal  table ;  and  as,  according  to  the  Jewish  law, 
only  certain  animals  were  accounted  clean,  and  even  these 
had  to  be  slain  in  such  a  manner  as  to  leave  no  blood  in 
the  flesh  before  they  could  be  eaten,  it  must  be  at  once  ap- 
parent that,  if  they  partook,  along  with  their  classmates,  of 
the  things  which  were  provided,  they  would  be  guilty  of  vio- 
lating the  precepts  of  the  IMosaic  code.  Besides,  it  was  a 
custom  among  the  heathen  to  bring  a  portion  of  that  which 
was  eaten  and  drunk  by  them  as  an  oblation  to  the  gods, 
and  sometimes  also  they  used  for  food  animals  that  had 
already  been  offered  at  the  altar  of  their  gods. 

It  is  possible,  therefore,  that  Daniel  and  his  friends  may 
have  felt  that  in  partaking  of  such  articles  of  diet  they 
would  be  giving  countenance  to  idolatry ;  or  perhaps,  as 
Calvin  suggests,  they  may  have  resolved  to  abstain  on  the 
principle  of  prudence,  believing  that  the  opportunity  of  self- 
indulgence  was  a  temptation,  and  desiring  to  keep  them- 
selves as  far  as  possible  from  danger.  To  me,  however,  it 
rather  seems,  from  the  fact  that  the  term  "defile"  is  used, 
that  their  scruple  was  a  religious  one,  and  was  in  some  way 

*  Kitto's  "  Daily  Bible  Readings,"  Evening  Series,  Twenty  -  third 
Week,  Seventh  Day. 


14  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

connected  with  their  nationality.  In  any  case,  the  purpose 
was  steadfastly  made  by  Daniel  that  he  would  not  partake 
of  anything  that  came  from  the  king's  table,  and  his  three 
friends  concurred  with  him  in  his  resolution.  It  was  a  mat- 
ter of  conscience  with  them,  and  they  were  determined  to 
abide  by  their  convictions  at  whatever  cost. 

This  purpose  is  the  more  to  be  admired  when  we  take 
into  account  their  youth,  their  condition  as  captives,  and  the 
effect  which  their  disobedience  of  the  king's  orders  might 
have  produced.  If  we  have  been  correct  in  supposing  that 
the  lads  were  all  as  yet  in  their  teens,  then  it  was  very  much 
to  their  credit,  and  spoke  much  for  the  character  of  their 
early  home-training,  that  they  had  any  deep  religious  con- 
victions at  all,  much  more  that  they  were  resolved  to  stand 
by  them. 

They  might  have  been  laughed  at  by  their  senior  fellow- 
students  ;  they  might  have  been  put  down  as  silly  boys  by 
those  who  were  in  authority  over  them ;  yet,  boys  as  they 
were,  they  would  not  barter  the  approval  of  their  own  con- 
sciences for  any  considerations  of  comfort  or  security.  Then 
they  were  captives.  If,  therefore,  the  refusal  to  carry  out 
the  royal  injunctions  would  have  endangered  the  life  of  the 
chief  of  the  eunuchs,  much  more  would  it  put  their  lives  in 
jeopardy.  Yet  they  were  firm.  They  did  not  suppose  that 
the  responsibility  of  deciding  such  a  question  was  removed 
from  them  to  their  master ;  neither  did  they  seek  to  shel- 
ter themselves  under  the  plea  that,  in  their  circumstances, 
it  was  necessary  for  them  to  yield.  They  felt  that  nothing 
could  make  it  necessary  for  them  to  sin.  They  knew  that, 
in  the  last  resort,  the  thing  came  to  be  a  matter  of  their  own 
choice,  and  they  deliberately  said  that  they  would  not  defile 
themselves.  What  did  it  signify,  though  they  should  ruin 
their  prospects  in  the  college  ?  They  were  not  to  be  drawn 
away  from  their  position  by  the  enticements  of  self-interest. 


Daniel  at  College.  15 

any  more  than  they  were  to  be  driven  from  it  by  the  fear  of 
those  things  with  which  they  might  be  threatened  for  their 
disobedience.  They  were  convinced  that  it  would  be  wrong 
for  them  to  take  the  food  provided  for  them ;  and  they  would 
not  do  wrong  on  any  pretext,  or  for  any  consideration.  It 
was  bravely  resolved,  and  the  firmness  of  character  which 
they  manifested  is  worthy  of  the  imitation  of  all  young  men 
similarly  circumstanced. 

But,  though  they  were  quite  determined,  they  did  not  at- 
tempt to  carry  out  their  purpose  in  a  foolish  and  quixotic 
way.  With  a  sagacity  which  is  the  prophecy  of  his  later 
wisdom,  Daniel  went  at  once  to  the  head  of  the  department, 
and  calmly  and  politely  explained  the  case  to  him. 

This  official — partly,  we  may  suppose,  from  the  frank  in- 
genuousness of  Daniel  himself,  but  principally,  we  are  sure, 
from  the  operation  of  God's  Spirit  on  his  heart — had  taken 
a  great  interest  in  the  young  Jew ;  so  he  listened  with  atten- 
tion and  sympathy  to  his  request.  It  was  not  in  his  power, 
however,  to  give  his  direct  sanction  to  the  proposal  which 
Daniel  made.  Had  he  done  that,  he  would  have  forfeited 
his  life.  But,  in  all  probabilit}',  he  gave  the  young  student 
to  understand  that  if  he  could  prevail  upon  Melzar,  his  sub- 
ordinate, who  was  immediately  over  him  and  his  compan- 
ions, to  comply  with  his  wishes,  he  would  himself  wink  at 
the  irregularity,  and  no  harm  would  come  of  it.  At  the  same 
time,  he  may  have  privately  counselled  Melzar  to  look  with 
favor  on  Daniel's  request,  and  stretch  a  point  in  his  behalf. 

To  him,  accordingly,  Daniel  went,  and  proposed  that  the 
matter  might  be  submitted  to  experiment.  He  asked  that 
for  ten  days  they  might  be  permitted  to  live  on  pulse  (a 
kind  of  coarse  grain,  or  pease)  and  water,  and  if  at  the  end 
of  that  time  they  seemed-to  have  deteriorated,  then  he  might 
do  with  them  as  he  pleased  ;  but  if  they  appeared  as  well- 
favored  as  before,  then  they  might  be  allowed  to  continue 


1 6  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

their  abstemious  diet.  Melzar  agreed  to  his  proposal. 
The  experiment  was  made,  and  it  was  signally  successful ; 
so  they  were  allowed  to  carry  out  their  determination  with  a 
good  conscience,  and  they  gave  themselves  with  such  ardor 
to  their  studies  that,  with  the  blessing  of  God  upon  their  ef- 
forts, they  made  more  progress  than  their  companions ;  for 
at  the  end  of  three  years,  when  the  graduation  examination 
was  held,  there  were  none  found  like  them  ;  nay,  they  were 
discovered  to  be  ten  times  better  in  all  matters  of  wisdom 
and  understanding  than  all  the  magicians  and  all  the  astrol- 
ogers that  were  in  all  the  realm. 

Many  wholesome  lessons  may  be  learned  from  this  narra- 
tive.    I  select  only  a  few  of  the  more  prominent. 

In  the  first  place,  we  see  how  national  sins  are  followed 
ever  by  divine  retribution.  In  their  victorious  progress  west- 
ward, the  rulers  of  Assyria  and  Babylon,  when  they  conquered 
any  important  city  or  territory,  adopted  the  plan  of  carrying 
its  inhabitants  to  one  of  their  Eastern  possessions,  and  of 
supplying  the  places  of  those  who  were  thus  removed  by 
colonists  sent  from  some  far-distant  province.*  In  this  way 
they  secured  many  important  political  advantages.  They 
filled  the  newly  annexed  district  with  settlers  on  whose  loy- 
alty they  could  depend,  thus  freeing  themselves  from  the 
necessity  of  constantly  occupying  it  with  an  armed  force  ; 
they  peopled  the  great  cities  which  they  were  building  in 
the  East ;  and,  by  removing  the  captives  from  their  native 
homes,  they  broke  up  the  sentiment  of  nationality  among 
them ;  so  that  within  two  or  three  generations  they  came  to 
be  merged  in  the  general  population  of  the  empire. 

But  while  the  Babylonians  were  proceeding  on  these 
plans,  and  acting  from  these  motives  in  the  case  of  the  Jews, 
they  were  at  the  same  time,  all  unconsciously  to  themselves, 

*  2  Kings  xvi.,  6-24. 


Daniel  at  College,  17 

the  instruments  whom  God  was  employing  for  the  chastise- 
ment of  his  people,  and  the  fulfilment  of  his  prophecies  re- 
garding them.  Listen  to  these  words,  taken  from  the  sacred 
chronicler.  They  describe  Zedekiah's  administration,  but, 
unhappily,  they  are  also  applicable  to  the  doings  of  the  peo- 
ple under  not  a  few  of  his  predecessors.  "  He  stiffened  his 
neck,  and  hardened  his  heart  from  turning  unto  the  Lord 
God  of  Israel.  Moreover,  all  the  chief  of  the  priests,  and 
the  people,  transgressed  very  much  after  all  the  abomina- 
tions of  the  heathen  ;  and  polluted  the  house  of  the  Lord 
which  he  had  hallowed  in  Jerusalem.  And  the  Lord  God 
of  their  fathers  sent  to  them  by  his  messengers,  rising  up  be- 
times, and  sending ;  because  he  had  compassion  on  his  peo- 
ple, and  on  his  dwelling-place.  But  they  mocked  the  mes- 
sengers of  God,  and  despised  his  words,  and  misused  his 
prophets,  until  the  wrath  of  the  Lord  arose  against  his  peo- 
ple, till  there  was  no  remedy.  Therefore  he  brought  upon 
them  the  king  of  the  Chaldees."* 

Then  let  these  sayings  be  compared  with  the  words  of 
Moses,  uttered  eight  hundred  and  sixty  years  before  :  "  But 
it  shall  come  to  pass,  if  thou  wilt  not  hearken  unto  the  voice 

of  the  Lord  thy  God The  Lord  shall  bring  thee,  and 

thy  king  which  thou  shalt  set  over  thee,  unto  a  nation  which 
neither  thou  nor  thy  fathers  have  known ;  and  there  shalt 
thou  serve  other  gods,  wood  and  stone."t 

Here,  therefore,  is  national  sin  punished  by  national  ca- 
lamity, and  that  without  any  miraculous  intervention  of  di- 
vine power,  but  simply  in  the  ordinary  course  of  Providence, 
and  through  the  operation  of  the  free-will  of  men.  There 
is  nothing  exceptional  in  the  case  but  the  fact  that  it  is  so 
fully  described  in  this  book,  and  that  we  are  permitted,  as 
it  were,  to  read  a  fragment  taken  from  the  secret  volume  of 

*  3  Chron.  xxxvL,  13-17.  t  Deut.  xxviii,,  15,  36. 


i8  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

the  plan  of  God.  The  same  processes  are  going  on  now. 
We  see  among  the  nations  of  the  earth  some  groaning  un- 
der the  consequences  of  iniquities  which  were  committed  by 
their  representatives  centuries  ago ;  and  we  behold  others 
pursuing  such  a  course  of  blind  folly  and  unscrupulous  self- 
ishness as  must  result,  sooner  or  later,  in  uttermost  disaster. 

It  is  said  that  nations  have  no  conscience.  In  one  sense 
that  is  true  ;  but  in  another,  that  is  just  the  evil  which  I 
would  most  earnestly  deprecate.  There  is  not  for  the  ag- 
gregate community  any  abstract  faculty  like  that  which  sits 
supremely  in  each  human  breast ;  but  still,  it  is  the  duty  of 
all  who  compose  a  nation  to  take  order  that  they  who  repre- 
sent them  shall,  in  all  their  dealings,  alike  with  their  fellow- 
citizens  and  with  other  nations,  act  with  justice,  truth,  honor, 
and  wisdom ;  for  if  they  do  not,  they  may  rest  assured  that 
the  day  of  vengeance  will  come,  sooner  or  later,  when  God 
will  visit  either  them  or  their  descendants  for  their  iniqui- 
ties. The  truest  patriot,  therefore,  is  ever  the  most  rigid  in 
his  demands  that  "the  rulers  shall  be  just,  ruling  in  the  fear 
of  the  Lord ;"  and  when  people  and  magistrates  together 
unite  "  to  mock  the  messengers  of  God  and  to  despise  his 
words,"  you  may  write  Ichabod  on  that  nation's  banner,  and 
put  Finis  to  its  history,  for  its  glory  will  be  departed,  and  its 
existence  ended. 

In  the  second  place,  we  see  here  most  admirably  illus- 
trated the  duty  of  adhering  in  all  circumstances  to  that 
course  of  conduct  which  in  our  consciences  we  believe  to 
be  right.  It  is  always  right  to  do  right.  That  may  seem 
to  be  a  truism,  yet  it  is  very  far  from  being  universally  acted 
upon.  Men  will  frequently  admit  that  a  thing  in  the  ab- 
stract is  duty,  and  then  persuade  themselves  to  do  the  op- 
posite, with  the  plea  that  in  their  circumstances  they  could 
not  help  themselves.  But  no  circumstances  can  make  that 
ri<iht  which  is  in  its  own  nature  wrona:-     It  never  can  be 


Daniel  at  College.  19 

necessary  to  sin.  No  doubt  we  may  say  that  if  we  refuse 
to  sin  under  certain  pressure,  death  will  be  the  result.  But 
that  will  not  alter  the  case ;  for  it  is  better  to  die  than  to 
sin  ;  and  if  there  be  no  other  way  out  of  it,  we  ought  to  be 
willing  to  die  rather  than  to  sin. 

Is  not  this  the  lesson  of  the  entire  martyrology  of  the 
Church  ?  And  are  we  worthy  of  the  privileges  which  others 
purchased  for  us  with  their  blood  if  we  refuse  to  follow  their 
example?  If  ever  young  men  could  say  that  circumstances 
warranted  them  in  yielding  up  their  convictions,  Daniel  and 
his  companions  were  these  young  men ;  yet  they  did  not 
make  any  such  excuse,  and  so  the  very  difficulty  of  their 
position  only  brought  their  nobleness  more  conspicuously 
to  view. 

But  in  putting  the  case  that  death  would  be  the  conse- 
quence of  refusing  to  sin,  I  have  somewhat  overstated  it. 
Frequently,  indeed,  death  has  been  the  result ;  but  it  is  not 
always  so.  It  was  not  so  in  the  instance  before  us.  God 
opened  the  way  before  these  youths,  and  made  it  easier  for 
them  to  follow  the  dictates  of  their  consciences  than  per- 
haps, at  first,  they  feared  it  would  be.  And  it  is  often  thus. 
Indeed,  we  may  say  that  the  difficulties  in  the  way  of  the 
discharge  of  duty  are  rarely  so  formidable  in  the  actual 
encounter  as  they  seemed  to  be  in  the  anticipation.  When 
God  says,  "Go  forward,"  then,  as  we  advance,  that  which  ap- 
peared to  be — nay,  which  really  was — a  sea  of  trouble  is  di- 
vided before  us,  and  he  leads  us  through  on  dry  land.  The 
slothful  man  says, "  There  is  a  lion  in  the  path ;"  but  the  in- 
dustrious man  advances  to  discover  that  it  is  only  a  harmless 
shrub,  which,  in  the  gray  twilight  of  the  morning,  his  neigh- 
bor's fears  have  magnified  into  the  likeness  of  the  king  of 
the  forest.  In  like  manner,  the  weak-willed  one  who  yields 
to  temptation,  saying,  *'  I  could  not  do  otherwise,"  exagger- 
ates the  difficulties  of  resisting ;  while  the  brave-souled  be- 


20  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

liever,  as  he  presses  on,  discovers  that  the  obstacles  recede 
before  him,  and  he  has  a  clear  path  all  through. 

Let  us  be  admonished,  therefore,  by  the  example  of  these 
youths.  Especially  let  the  young  people  before  me  take 
heart  from  the  record  of  the  manner  in  which  God  prepared 
the  way  for  Daniel.  Away  from  home,  at  school,  or  college, 
or  business,  you  may  miss  the  friendly  counsel  of  Christian 
companions,  and  the  wise  directions  and  loving  fellowship 
of  parents,  and  may  feel  it  hard  to  be  left  entirely  on  your 
own  resources,  with  no  one  to  consult  in  times  of  perplex- 
ity. Yet  you  have  God  to  go  to,  and  he  will  be  for  you  if 
you  will  be  for  him.  Stand,  then,  on  your  convictions,  and 
make  your  appeal  to  him  for  help.  Have  you  never  read 
these  words, "  When  a  man's  ways  please  the  Lord,  he  mak- 
eth  even  his  enemies  to  be  at  peace  with  him  ?"  They  mean 
something.  There  is  scarcely  one  Christian  here  who  has 
come  to  middle  life  but  can  tell  you  some  chapter  of  his 
own  history  that  will  corroborate  their  truth.  Courage,  then, 
my  young  brothers  !  Do  only  and  always  that  which  is  right, 
and  you  will  often  find  that  where  you  had  feared  there  was 
a  yawning  chasm  and  a  foaming  torrent  to  cross,  God  had 
already  provided  for  you  a  bridge. 

In  the  third  place,  we  have  in  this  history  an  illustration 
of  the  value  of  temperance  in  eating  and  drinking.  It  is 
supposed  by  many  that  a  luxurious  diet  is  necessary  to 
health,  and  not  seldom  men  use  intoxicating  drink  as  a  con- 
stant beverage,  under  the  delusion  that  it  imparts  strength. 
But  both  of  these  mistakes  are  exposed  in  the  narrative  be- 
fore us.  A  sparing  diet  is  conducive  to  health  and  long  life, 
while  the  pampering  of  the  appetite  with  many  dainties  tends 
to  the  production  of  disease.  Then,  as  regards  strong  drink, 
we  have  the  testimony  of  medical  men  of  highest  standing 
to  the  fact  that  it  is  not  necessary  to  a  healthy  person,  and 
that  its  habitual  use  is  always  more  or  less  injurious.    Hence, 


Daniel  at  College.  21 

if  for  no  other  reason,  we  might  well  abstain  from  it  as  an 
article  of  diet.  But  when  we  take  into  account  the  insidious 
nature  of  alcohol,  which  always  creates  a  craving  for  itself, 
and,  above  all,  when  we  think  of  the  numbers  in  the  land 
who  are  continually  falling  under  its  power,  and  of  the  fear- 
ful amount  of  misery  and  crime  which  is  traceable  directly 
or  indirectly  to  its  influence,  we  may  surely  be  brought  to 
adopt  the  course  of  Daniel  and  his  friends  in  regard  to  it, 
the  rather  as  no  evil  consequences  will  follow  the  carrj'ing- 
out  of  such  a  resolution. 

Do  not  say  to  me  that  there  is  no  danger  of  you.  It  is 
he  who  thinketh  he  standeth  here  who  has  most  need  to 
take  heed  lest  he  fall.  You  may  find  among  the  helpless, 
almost  hopeless,  drunkards  on  our  streets  many  who  once 
said  the  same  thing  as  you  are  now  saying,  and  who  seemed 
then  to  have  as  good  ground  for  saying  it  as  you  have  now. 
Why,  then,  should  you  imagine  that  you  are  in  this  respect 
infallible  ? 

You  may  reply  again,  as  some  have  done,  that  if  there 
were  any  certainty  that  you  would  become  a  drunkard  you 
would  abstain.  But  to  that  I  answer,  in  the  words  of  But- 
ler, "  Probability  is  the  guide  of  life."  You  guard  against 
probabilities,  nay,  even  against  mere  possibilities,  in  other 
things ;  why  not  also  in  this  ?  You  have  no  certainty  that 
your  house  shall  take  fire,  yet,  as  a  prudent  man,  you  insure 
it,  and  your  furniture  too ;  you  have  no  positive  knowledge 
that  your  ship  shall  be  lost  at  sea,  yet,  as  a  wise  man,  you 
underwrite  it  to  the  full.  So  abstinence  from  strong  drink 
is  an  insurance  against  intemperance,  with  this  advantage — 
that  the  premium  goes  not  into  the  coffers  of  a  wealthy  com- 
pany, but  comes  back  to  yourself  in  the  shape  of  pecuniary 
saving,  physical  health,  and  domestic  comfort. 

But  I  care  not  to  put  this  question  on  such  selfish  ground. 
I  ask  you  to  look  at  it  in  the  light  of  the  multitudes  whom 


22  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

strong  drink  is  beguiling  to  their  ruin.  Will  you  not  abstain, 
if  thereby  you  may  remove  temptation  out  of  their  way,  and 
help  them  to  restoration  ?  There  is  no  hope  for  them  save 
in  abstaining.  But  should  not  we  assist  them  by  the  moral 
influence  of  our  fellowship  with  them  in  so  doing  ?  When 
David  thirsted  for  the  water  of  the  well  of  Bethlehem,  and 
his  three  mighty  men  broke  through  the  enemy's  ranks  and 
returned  with  a  pitcherful  of  it,  he  would  not  drink  it.  Men's 
lives  had  been  jeoparded  for  it !  So  he  poured  it  out  be- 
fore the  Lord.  In  like  manner,  when  the  wine-cup  is  pre- 
sented to  you,  think  of  the  multitudes  of  souls  which  are  not 
merely  imperilled,  but  destroyed,  by  that  bewitching  draught, 
and  then  you,  too,  will  pour  it  out  before  the  Lord,  saying, 
"  It  is  good  neither  to  eat  flesh,  nor  to  drink  wine,  nor  to  do 
anything  whereby  a  brother  stumbleth,  or  is  offended,  or  is 
made  weak." 

Finally,  we  may  see  here  how  God's  hand  is  in  all  his 
people's  concerns.  He  gave  Daniel  favor  in  the  eyes  of 
Ashpenaz,  and  he  gave  him  and  his  three  friends  "knowl- 
edge and  skill  in  all  learning  and  wisdom."  Doubtless  all 
this  had  been  made  matter  of  prayer  by  the  youths  them- 
selves ;  yet  it  is  interesting  to  note  how  it  is  here  so  simply 
and  sublimely  recognized.  And  are  not  we  taught  by  this 
to  consult  God  about  everything?  Let  those  who  are  far 
from  home  ask  God  to  bring  them  to  the  knowledge  of 
some  safe  and  sagacious  friends.  Let  those  who  are  in  per- 
plexing care  ask  God  to  give  them  light.  Let  the  man  of 
business  make  request  to  God  for  guidance  in  the  difficul- 
ties that  daily  meet  him.  Let  the  housewife  go  to  him  with 
her  domestic  trials.  Let  the  very  school-boys  among  us  ask 
God  to  assist  them  in  their  evening  studies.  Did  you  ever 
think  of  that,  my  children  ?  Your  sums  would  be  done  by 
you  more  diligently;  your  hard  sentences  would  be  con- 
strued by  you  with  more  interest ;  your  very  satchels  would 


Daniel  at  College.  23 

sit  more  lightly  on  your  shoulders,  and  your  steps  as  you  go 
forth  to  school  would  be  more  joyous,  if  you  would  only  rev- 
erently and  confidingly  ask  God  to  help  you  in  your  educa- 
tion. Try  it,  from  this  time  forward ;  and  so  the  story  of 
Daniel's  college  life  will  be  to  you  a  perennial  blessing. 


II. 

THE  FORGOTTEN  DREAM. 
Daniel  ii.,  1-23. 

THE  events  recorded  in  the  second  chapter  of  the  Book 
of  Daniel  are  there  said  to  have  occurred  in  the  sec- 
ond year  of  the  reign  of  Nebuchadnezzar.  Now,  as  in  the 
first  verse  of  the  same  book  it  is  affirmed  that  Daniel  and 
his  friends  were  taken  captives  from  Jerusalem  in  the  third 
year  of  Jehoiakim,  and  as,  in  the  twenty-fifth  chapter  of  Jere- 
miah, the  fourth  of  Jehoiakim  is  identified  with  the  first  of 
Nebuchadnezzar,  a  chronological  difficulty  is  created,  which, 
as  usual,  has  been  made  the  most  of  by  the  antagonists  of 
the  Sacred  Scriptures.  If,  say  they,  Daniel  was  taken  to 
Babylon  in  the  third  of  Jehoiakim,  and  was  subsequently 
three  years  in  training  at  the  royal  college,  how  could  the 
events  narrated  in  this  chapter  have  occurred  in  the  sec- 
ond year  of  Nebuchadnezzar,  if  at  least  Jeremiah  is  right  in 
speaking  of  the  fourth  of  Jehoiakim  as  the  first  of  Nebu- 
chadnezzar ? 

Different  solutions  of  this  question  have  been  proposed, 
the  most  probable  being  that  adopted  by  Milman,  Pusey, 
Stuart,  and  other  similar  expositors,  who  suppose  that  Neb- 
uchadnezzar reigned  for  some  time  conjointly  with  his  fa- 
ther, Nabopolassar,  and  that  Jeremiah  reckons  the  com- 
mencement of  his  reign  from  the  beginning  of  that  associ- 
ation, while  Daniel  counts  it  from  the  time  when,  after  Na- 
bopolassar's  death,  Nebuchadnezzar  became  sole  monarch. 

Some  foundation  for  this  view  is  furnished  by  Berosus,  the 


The  Forgotten  Dream.  25 

historian,  who  states  that  Nabopolassar,  being  infirm,  gave 
up  his  army  to  his  son,  who,  having  defeated  the  Egyptians 
at  Carchemish,  marched  on  to  Jerusalem  and  took  it.  But 
whether  this  explanation  be  accounted  satisfactory  or  not, 
the  very  existence  of  such  a  difficulty  becomes,  when  rightly 
looked  at,  a  proof  of  the  good  faith  of  the  writer.  A  forger 
would  not  deliberately  introduce  difficulties,  but  would  take 
particular  care  to  avoid  anything  like  discrepancies  between 
his  statements  and  those  made  in  books  already  existing 
and  received  as  authoritative.  Now  we  know,  from  the 
ninth  chapter  of  Daniel,  that  the  author  of  this  book  repre- 
sents Daniel  as  a  diligent  student  of  the  prophecies  of  Jere- 
miah, and  it  is  utterly  inconceivable  in  such  circumstances 
that  an  impostor  would  introduce  here  a  date  that  seems  to 
be  at  variance  with  one  given  by  Jeremiah.  Hence  we  must 
conclude,  that  what  appears  to  be  a  discrepancy  to  us 
would  present  no  difficulty  to  those  who  lived  at  the  time, 
and  is  susceptible  of  some  such  explanation  as  that  which  I 
have  given. 

But,  leaving  this  question  of  dates,  let  us  proceed  to  the 
narrative  itself  Nebuchadnezzar,  by  his  victory  over  Pha- 
raoh and  his  capture  of  Jerusalem,  had  enlarged  his  domin- 
ions up  to  the  Mediterranean  Sea,  and  it  is  natural  to  sup- 
pose that  he  must  have  thought  much  and  long  upon  the  prob- 
able future  of  the  empire  which  he  had  thus  extended.  No 
one  can  be  altogether  insensible  to  the  after-destiny  of  any- 
thing in  the  acquisition  or  construction  of  which  he  has  been 
specially  interested.  Men  may  deny  the  existence  of  a  fut- 
ure state,  but  they  never  think  of  doubting  that  history  will 
go  on  developing  itself  after  they  have  left  the  world,  even 
as  it  did  before  they  appeared  on  the  earth,  and  while  they 
lived  upon  it.  Hence,  whatever  their  religious  opinions  may 
be,  they  cannot  shut  out  of  their  minds  all  consideration  of 
the  future  (ate  of  that  with  which  through  life  they  have  been 

2 


26  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

greatly  concerned,  but  which  they  must,  sooner  or  later,  leave 
behind  them. 

We  are  all  more  or  less  conscious  of  this  in  our  own  little 
concerns  ;  and  we  try,  by  some  testamentary  deed,  to  pro- 
vide as  far  as  possible  that  the  things  in  which  we  delighted 
shall  pass  into  the  hands  of  those  who  shall  think  well  both 
of  us  and  them.  The  man  of  science  cannot  contemplate 
with  any  satisfaction  the  idea  of  the  various  specimens  in 
his  museum  being  scattered  among  strangers,  so  he  con- 
trives to  leave  his  collection,  as  a  whole,  to  some  public  in- 
stitution, linking  his  name  with  his  legacy,  that  he  may  keep 
himself  from  being  forgotten.  The  scholar  or  theologian 
does  the  same  with  his  library,  and  the  man  of  taste  acts  on 
a  similar  principle  with  his  gallery  of  pictures.  Much  in  the 
same  way  the  ambitious  conqueror,  whose  heart  is  set  upon 
the  empire  which  he  has  made,  desires  to  forecast  its  future. 
He  wishes,  perhaps,  to  found  a  dynasty,  or  he  seeks,  in  some 
way,  to  secure  the  perpetuity  of  his  kingdom  as  a  whole,  in 
order  that  he  may  be  spoken  of  always  as  its  founder. 

Now,  active,  scheming,  vigorous,  and  unscrupulous  as  Neb- 
uchadnezzar was,  we  may  be  sure  that  these  subjects  were 
often  pondered  by  him  ;  and  on  one  occasion,  when,  as  he 
lay  upon  his  bed,  he  had  been  thinking  specially  "what 
should  come  to  pass  hereafter,"  he  fell  asleep  and  dreamed 
a  curious  dream,  which  somehow  peculiarly  impressed  him 
as  having  an  intimate  connection  with  the  train  of  thought 
which  he  had  been  prosecuting.  Indeed,  he  regarded  it  as 
being  in  some  sort  an  indication  from  Heaven  of  the  future, 
concerning  which  he  was  so  anxious. 

Nor  was  this  idea  altogether  unnatural,  for,  among  all 
nations,  at  that  time,  it  was  generally  supposed  that  dreams 
were  one  of  the  media  through  which  divine  revelations 
were  made,  and  there  were  everywhere  recognized  men  of 
learning,  whose  special  office  it  was  to  interpret  such  visions. 


The  Forgotten  Dream.  27 

Homer,  in  a  well-known  passage  in  his  "  Iliad,"*  says  that 
a  dream  is  from  Jupiter,  and  elsewhere  he  relates  how  the 
mind  of  Jove  was  communicated  to  Agamemnon  in  a  vision. 
I  do  not  imagine,  indeed,  that  the  ancient  heathens  would 
account  every  dream  as  worthy  of  attention  ;  but  when,  as 
in  the  present  instance,  the  vision  came  to  the  most  impor- 
tant and  exalted  person  in  the  nation,  and  made  such  an 
impression  upon  him,  that  he  was  troubled  and  overawed  in 
spirit,  they  would  at  once  conclude  that  there  was  some  spe- 
cial significance  in  it,  and  that  it  was  to  be  viewed  as  a  di- 
vine revelation.  We  cannot  affirm  that  they  were  always 
right  in  regarding  particular  dreams  as  from  the  Lord,  but 
that  they  were  sometimes  correct  is  evident  from  the  cases 
of  Pharaoh  and  Nebuchadnezzar ;  and  even  yet  it  is  a  ques- 
tion very  difficult  to  answer  in  a  definite  manner,  whether 
any  significance,  or,  if  any,  how  much,  is  to  be  attributed  to 
the  visions  of  the  night. 

We  all  allow  that  God  may,  and  does,  influence  the  work- 
ings of  our  minds  through  the  operation  of  the  laws  of  sug- 
gestion or  association  while  we  are  awake  ;  for  it  is  impos- 
sible to  hold  in  any  intelligible  fashion  the  doctrine  of  the 
agency  of  the  Holy  Spirit  unless  we  make  such  an  admis- 
sion. But  if  God  can  thus  influence  our  minds  when  we 
are  awake,  it  is  equally  easy  for  him  to  do  so  while  we  sleep, 
so  that  there  is  no  antecedent  impossibility  against  the  view 
that  there  may  be  something  in  dreams,  after  all. 

Again,  the  providence  of  God  must  take  cognizance  of 
our  dreams  equally  with  our  waking  thoughts,  and  must  be 
equally  over  both,  if,  at  least,  we  are  to  conceive  of  it  as  re- 
ally universal.  Hence  there  is  nothing  absurd  or  unphilo- 
sophical  in  supposing  that  God  may  avail  himself  of  the  phe- 
nomena of  dreams  for  the  purpose  of  turning  the  mind  to 

*  "  Iliad,"  i.,  63. 


28  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

his  truth  or  leading  it  in  some  particular  direction.  How 
far  he  does  this,  it  is  impossible  to  say.  But  I  have  read' 
and  heard  so  many  well-authenticated  anecdotes  which  told 
of  singular  things — call  them  coincidences  or  what  you  will 
— in  reference  to  dreams,  that  I  would  hesitate  to  affirm  that 
there  is  never  anything  whatever  in  them  ;  while,  on  the  oth- 
er hand,  so  much  nonsense,  superstition,  tricker}^,  and  deceit 
have  been  connected  with  dreams  and  their  fancied  inter- 
pretation, that  one  hesitates  equally  to  admit  that  there  is 
anything  in  them.  In  the  autobiography  of  Lord  Brougham 
there  is  told  a  marvellous  story  of  an  experience  of  this  kind 
which  that  noble  lord  had  in  early  life,  and  which  is  vouched 
for  by  himself  One  of  his  early  companions  had  made  an 
agreement  with  him,  in  reckless  joke,  that  in  order  to  set  at 
rest  the  question  of  a  future  state,  the  first  of  them  to  die 
should,  if  there  was  reality  in  the  after-life,  appear  to  the  sur- 
vivor, and  enlighten  him  on  the  subject.  Years  passed  away ; 
his  friend  went  to  India,  and  one  evening  as  Brougham  was 
in  his  bath  he  fell  into  a  brief  sleep  and  dreamed  that  he 
saw  his  former  companion,  who  assured  him  that  there  was 
a  future  state,  for  he  had  now  entered  upon  it.  Months  af 
terward  he  received  intelligence  of  his  friend's  death,  and  on 
making  investigation  discovered  that  it  must  have  occurred 
about  the  very  time  of  his  own  dream.  On  this  Brougham 
remarks  :  "  Singular  coincidence  !  Yet,  when  one  reflects 
on  the  vast  number  of  dreams  which,  night  after  night,  pass 
through  our  brains,  the  number  of  coincidences  between  the 
vision  and  the  event  are,  perhaps,  fewer  and  less  remarkable 
than  a  fair  calculation  of  chances  would  warrant  us  to  ex- 
pect. Nor  is  it  surprising,  considering  the  variety  of  our 
thoughts  in  sleep,  and  that  they  all  bear  some  analogy  to 
the  affairs  of  life,  that  a  dream  should  sometimes  coincide 
with  a  contemporaneous,  or  even  with  a  future,  event.  This 
is  not  much  more  wonderful  than  that  a  person  whom  we 


The  Forgotten  Dream.  29 

had  no  reason  to  expect  should  appear  to  us  at  the  very 
moment  we  had  been  thinking  or  speaking  of  him  ;  yet  so 
common  is  this  that  it  has  for  ages  grown  into  a  proverb."* 

Some  may  be  disposed  to  go  even  farther  than  his  lord- 
ship, but,  for  my  part,  I  prefer  to  leave  the  whole  thing  un- 
solved. Sleep  is  a  mystery,  and  dreams  are  a  mystery. 
What  wonder,  therefore,  that  many  problems  concerning 
both  should  baffle  our  ingenuity  to  explain  ?  We  apply  to 
this  subject  the  words  of  Hamlet  in  reference  to  appari- 
tions :  "  There  are  more  things  in  heaven  and  earth  than 
are  dreamt  of  in  our  philosophy ;"  and  whatever  may  be  the 
case  with  dreams  in  general,  we  have  at  least  the  highest 
authority  for  believing  that,  in  the  present  instance,  Nebu- 
chadnezzar was  right  in  regarding  his  vision  as  from  the 
Lord. 

But  though  he  had  a  profound  impression  of  the  impor- 
tance of  his  dream,  he  was  quite  unable  to  recall  it  when  he 
awoke.  This  is  not  so  peculiar  an  experience  as  to  need 
any  special  remark.  We  have  all  had  similar  things  hap- 
pen to  ourselves  in  regard,  not  only  to  the  visions  of  the 
night,  but  to  waking  realities.  Every  one  knows  what  it  is 
to  have  forgotten  a  name,  which,  in  spite  of  all  his  efforts  to 
recall  it,  will  not  come  at  his  command,  but  which  he  recog- 
nizes in  a  moment  when  it  is  suggested  to  him  by  another. 
And  many  a  musician  can  tell  that  frequently  he  has  been 
unable  to  raise  a  tune  which  he  had  formerly  known,  but 
which  he  recognized  at  once  Avhen  it  was  struck  up  by  an- 
other. But,  as  still  more  closely  analogous  to  the  case  of 
Nebuchadnezzar  here,  I  quote  two  instances.  The  first  I 
have  met  with  in  the  course  of  my  reading  in  mental  philos- 
ophy, but  I  have  been  unable,  after  long  search  through  my 

*  "Autobiography  of  Henry,  Lord  Brougham,"  vol.  i.,  pp.  146-14S. 
Harper  &  Brothers,  New  York. 


30  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

library,  to  lay  my  hands  upon  the  authority  ;*  the  second  I 
take  from  the  biography  of  the  poet  Coleridge.  A  gentle- 
man connected  with  the  bar  had  a  veiy  difficult  case  in  hand, 
and  as  the  day  for  the  trial  drew  near  his  mind  was  contin- 
uously dwelling  upon  it.  One  morning  during  this  period, 
he  happened  to  say  to  his  wife  at  the  breakfast-table  that  he 
had,  in  his  dreams,  delivered  a  clear  opinion  on  the  cause, 
and  that  he  would  give  a  great  deal  if  he  could  recall  the 
argument  which  had  then  passed  through  his  mind,  as  he 
believed  it  to  be  thoroughly  convincing.  His  wife  smiled, 
and  said  that  if  he  went  to  his  writing-table,  and  opened  a 
particular  drawer,  she  fancied  he  would  find  it  fully  written 
out.  Then  she  explained  that,  in  his  sleep,  he  had  risen 
and  gone  to  his  desk,  and  sat  down  to  write ;  and  that  she, 
fearing  something  had  gone  wrong  with  him,  had  followed, 
but,  finding  that  he  was  engaged  at  his  desk,  had  watched 
in  silence  until  he  had  finished.  He  hastened  to  his  study, 
and,  in  glancing  over  the  paper,  recognized  in  a  moment 
the  argument  to  which  he  had  referred. 

The  incident  in  Coleridge's  life  refers  to  the  composition 
of  his  metrical  fragment,  entitled  "  Kubla  Khan,"  which, 
he  says,  came  to  him  during  sleep,  into  which  he  fell  while 
reading  in  "  Purchas's  Pilgrims."  He  continued  for  about 
three  hours  apparently  in  sleep,  during  which  he  had  the 
most  vivid  impression  that  he  had  composed  between  two 
and  three  hundred  lines.  "The  images,"  he  says,  "rose 
up  before  me  as  things  with  a  parallel  production  of  the 
correspondent  expressions,  without  any  sensation  or  con- 
sciousness of  effort."  On  awaking,  he  had  so  distinct  a  re- 
membrance of  the  whole,  that  he  seized  his  pen  and  wrote 
down  the  fragment  which  is  still  preserved.     Unfortunately, 

*  Since  the  above  was  written,  I  have  discovered  it,  viz.,  Abercrom- 
bie's  "  Intellectual  Powers,"  p.  222. 


The  Forgotten  Dream.  31 

however,  he  was  called  away  to  attend  to  some  business. 
The  interruption  lasted  more  than  an  hour,  and,  on  his  re- 
turn to  his  study,  he  found,  to  his  intense  surprise  and  mor- 
tification, that,  though  he  still  retained  some  vague  and  dim 
recollection  of  the  general  purport  of  the  vision,  yet,  with 
the  exception  of  some  eight  or  ten  scattered  lines  and  im- 
ages, all  the  rest  had  passed  away,  like  the  images  on  the 
surface  of  a  stream  into  which  a  stone  had  been  cast.  Thus 
the  thing  had  gone  from  him,  as  in  the  case  before  us.* 

But  Nebuchadnezzar  thought  that  he  had  a  sure  resource 
to  fall  back  upon.  There  were  in  his  realm  magicians,  as- 
trologers, sorcerers,  and  Chaldeans,  who  professed  to  be 
able,  from  the  practice  of  various  arts,  to  furnish  the  inter- 
pretation of  any  dream ;  and  the  king,  believing  that  if  they 
could  correctly  explain  a  vision,  they  could  also  accurately 
reproduce  that  which  he  had  seen,  sent  for  them,  and  told 
the  circumstances  in  which  he  was  placed,  at  the  same  time 
informing  them  that  if  they  failed  in  making  known  to  him 
both  the  dream  and  its  interpretation,  they  should  be  put 
to  death  in  the  most  shameful  manner,  and  their  houses 
razed  to  the  foundation  ;  while,  if  they  succeeded,  they 
should  be  loaded  with  honors  and  rewards. 

This  procedure  on  the  part  of  the  monarch  has  been 
much  blamed ;  and,  indeed,  so  far  as  regards  the  harshness 
and  severity  of  the  sentence  which  he  pronounced  in  case 
of  the  failure  of  the  wise  men,  there  is  nothing  to  be  said 
in  its  defence.  We  must  only  bear  in  mind  that  he  was  an 
Oriental  despot,  and  that  the  cruelty  of  this  decree  is  quite 
in  keeping  with  his  treatment  of  Daniel's  three  friends  af- 
terward, and  with  his  brutality  to  Zedekiah,  the  King  of  Ju- 
dah.     Unhappily,  such  capricious  and  utterly  inhuman  out- 

*  See  Coleridge's  "Complete  Works,"  edited  by  Professor  Shedd, 
vol.  vii.,  p.  212. 


32  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

rages  were  by  no  means  vuicommon  in  the  East,  and  are 
even  yet  far  too  largely  practised  by  the  Persian,  Indian, 
and  Turkish  rulers. 

So  far,  however,  as  his  demand  that  the  wise  men  should 
reproduce  the  dream  is  concerned,  we  cannot  see  that  Neb- 
uchadnezzar was  at  fault ;  for  if  they,  by  divine  assistance, 
or  even  by  human  skill,  could  tell  infallibly  what  a  dream 
meant,  it  was  quite  as  easy  for  them  to  tell  the  dream  itself. 
But  had  they  made  the  attempt,  they  knew  that  they  would 
certainly  have  been  detected  as  impostors.  Hence  they  ex- 
claimed against  his  demand.  They  alleged  that  he  was  ask- 
ing a  new  and  preposterous  thing,  and  affirmed  that  there 
was  none  that  could  show  what  he  wanted,  save  the  gods, 
whose  dwelling  was  not  with  flesh. 

This,  however,  only  exasperated  the  king  the  more,  and 
made  him  at  once  issue  the  decree  which  he  had  threat- 
ened. Nay,  such  was  his  fury  that  he  required  the  captain 
of  his  guard  to  proceed  at  once  to  the  wholesale  massacre 
of  the  wise  men ;  and,  as  it  would  seem,  the  butchery  had 
been  actually  carried  on  for  some  time  before  Daniel  be- 
came aware  of  the  events  out  of  which  it  arose ;  for  it  was 
only  when  Arioch  came  to  lead  him  and  his  companions 
out  to  execution  that  he  discovered  what  had  occurred. 
He  complained  of  the  unseemly  haste  of  the  king,  and  of 
the  grievous  injustice  of  putting  him  and  his  friends  to 
death  before  they  had  had  an  opportunity  of  trying  to  com- 
ply with  the  royal  request  as  to  the  interpretation  of  his 
dream.  He  further  desired  that  time  should  be  given,  and 
promised  that  he  would  furnish  what  Nebuchadnezzar 
wanted. 

Had  the  matter  been  one  in  which  the  king  was  less  in- 
terested, it  is  questionable  if  any  effect  would  have  been 
produced  by  this  expostulation.  Very  likely  Arioch  v.ould 
have  said,  "  It  is  too  late  now.     I  have  to  obey  orders,  or 


The  Forgotten  Dreali. 


33 


lose  my  own  life."  But,  knowing  that,  above  and  beyond 
all  other  things,  Nebuchadnezzar  desired  to  understand  the 
meaning  of  his  dream,  Arioch  hastened  to  inform  the  mon- 
arch that  he  had  come  upon  one  of  the  Jewish  captives  who 
professed  to  be  able  to  interpret  his  vision,  and  whose  only 
stipulations  were  that  the  needful  time  should  be  granted, 
and  that  the  massacre  of  the  wise  men  should  be  stayed. 
•To  these  terms  the  monarch  readily  consented;  and  Dan- 
iel, telling  his  three  friends  of  the  responsibility  which  he 
had  taken  upon  him,  engaged  them  to  pray  earnestly  on  his 
behalf,  or,  as  it  is  phrased  in  the  narrative,  "  to  desire  mer- 
cies of  the  God  of  heaven  concerning  this  secret." 

In  answer  to  this  united  prayer,  the  vision  was  revealed 
to  Daniel,  as  it  had  been  to  Nebuchadnezzar,  in  his  sleep ; 
and  the  first  thing  he  did  when  he  awoke  was  to  offer  an 
appropriate  thanksgiving  to  God,  who  had  thus  highly  fa- 
vored him.  Then  he  went  to  Arioch,  who  introduced  him 
to  the  king  ;  and,  first  of  all,  disclaiming  in  the  most  explicit 
terms  that  he  had  received  the  secret  "for  any  wisdom  that 
he  had  more  than  any  living,"  and  giving  the  entire  glory  to 
God,  whose  he  was  and  whom  he  served,  he  rehearsed  the 
vision,  and  gave  the  interpretation  in  such  a  way  as  to  sat- 
isfy the  monarch  that  he  had  reached  the  truth. 

Keeping  to  his  word,  the  king  honored  him  with  many 
great  gifts,  and  made  him  ruler  over  the  whole  province  of 
Babylon,  and  chief  of  the  governors  over  all  the  wise  men. 
But  Daniel  would  have  no  "lonely  glory."  His  three 
friends,  by  their  prayers,  had  helped  him  to  his  exaltation, 
and,  at  his  request,  they  also  were  set  over  the  affairs  of 
the  empire,  though  he  himself  held  the  foremost  place  at 
the  court,  or  gate  of  the  king,  and  was,  in  modern  phrase, 
Grand  Vizier  of  the  Porte  of  Babylon. 

I  have  not  given  either  a  description  of  the  vision  itself, 
or  of  its  explanation  by  the  prophet,  my  main  business  in 

2* 


34  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

these  discourses  being  with  the  incidents  of  Daniel's  life 
and  their  lessons ;  but  it  may  be  interesting  and  instructive 
to  take  a  rapid  survey  of  them  both,  and  this  I  shall  attempt 
to  do  in  my  next  lecture.  Meanwhile  we  cannot  fail  to  be 
reminded  by  all  this  history  of  another  captive,  who,  for  his 
interpretation  of  royal  dreams,  was  raised  to  the  second  po- 
sition in  the  Egyptian  realm ;  and  it  is  interesting  to  note 
the  marks  of  resemblance  and  difference  between  the  two. 

Joseph  and  Daniel  were  alike  in  that  they  were  both  men 
of  incorruptible  fidelity  and  devout  humility ;  and  they  stand 
out  in  Jewish  history — the  one  at  its  beginning,  and  the 
other  near  its  close  —  as  men  in  whom  few,  if  any,  defects 
of  character  or  blemishes  of  conduct  appear.  As  Auberlen 
has  beautifully  said,  "  They  were  both  representatives  of 
the  true  God  and  his  people  at  heathen  courts  ;  both  were 
exemplary  in  their  pure  walk  before  the  Lord ;  both  were 
endowed  with  the  gift  of  bringing  into  clear  light  the  dim 
presentiments  of  truth  which  express  themselves  among  the 
heathen  in  God -sent  dreams;  both  were  gifted  with  mar- 
vellous wisdom  and  insight,  and,  for  this  reason,  highly  hon- 
ored by  the  powers  of  this  world.  They  represent  the  call- 
ing of  Israel  to  be  a  holy  people,  a  royal  priesthood  among 
the  nations,  and  the  final  end  of  the  Old  Testament  theoc- 
racy to  lead  to  one  universal  is  clearly  shown  forth  by  their 
history.  Thus,  also,  they  are  types  of  Christ,  the  true  Is- 
rael, and  types  of  the  destiny  of  their  nation  by  which  it 

would  be  a  light  to  lighten  the  Gentiles Daniel,  in 

every  respect  more  visibly  blessed  than  Joseph,  is  the  most 
prominent  figure  and  the  greatest  character  in  the  last  cen- 
turies of  the  Old  Covenant,  the  most  excellent  example  of  a 
true  Israelite.  Such  a  man  was  called  to  be  the  apocalyptic 
prophet  of  the  Old  Testament.  And  since  we  know  that 
the  prophet  of  the  New  Testament  was  the  disciple  whom 
Jesus  loved,  the  circumstance  that  God  has  chosen  two  of 


The  Forgotten  Dream.  35 

the  best  men  under  the  Old  and  New  Covenants  to  receive 
and  record  his  Apocalypses  must  fill  us  with  deep  reverence 
for  their  apocalyptic  revelations."* 

But  now,  turning  to  the  practical  improvement  of  this  nar- 
rative, we  have  set  before  us,  in  the  first  place,  the  value  of 
united  prayer.  When  Daniel  undertook  the  solution  of  the 
difficulty  which  Nebuchadnezzar  had  brought  before  the 
wise  men,  he  engaged  his  three  friends  to  pray  earnestly  on 
his  behalf,  and  we  may  be  sure  that  he  was  fervent  in  sup- 
plication on  his  own  account.  He  believed  in  God  as  the 
hearer  of  prayer.  Wise  as  he  was,  he  was  not  too  wise  to 
make  request  to  God ;  nay,  rather  he  consecrated  his  wis- 
dom by  combining  it  with  piety.  Probably  he  remembered 
how,  in  the  ancient  history  of  his  people,  Aaron  and  Hur 
had  stayed  up  the  hands  of  Moses,  and  he  wished  to  be 
strengthened  similarly  by  the  prayers  of  his  companions. 
The  issue  showed  that  he  had  acted  wisely. 

We  are  reminded  by  it  of  an  interesting  episode  in  the 
history  of  the  Westminster  Assembly  of  Divines.  When 
that  learned  company  was  engaged  in  the  composition  of 
the  Shorter  Catechism,  and  had  come  to  the  question  "  What 
is  God  ?"  no  one  would  attempt  to  furnish  an  answer.  At 
length,  as  a  way  out  of  the  difficulty,  and  without  knowing 
who  the  person  was  that  might  be  appointed,  they  agreed 
that  the  youngest  man  present  should  be  required  to  write 
the  answer.  When  they  discovered  who  he  was,  there  was 
still  the  same  shrinking  in  his  heart,  but  at  length  he  agreed 
to  do  as  his  brethren  wished,  provided  they  would  permit 
him  to  retire,  and  would  promise  that  all  the  time  he  was 
away  they  would  pray  for  the  divine  assistance  to  be  ac- 
corded to  him.     They  did  so,  and  in  a  short  while  he  re-' 

*  "Daniel  and  the  Revelation,"  by  Carl  August  Auberlen,  translated 
by  Rev.  A.  Sapliir,  pp.  23,  24. 


36  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

turned  with  that  answer  with  which  we  are  all  familiar,  and 
the  comprehensive  brevity  and  clearness  of  which  have 
awakened  the  admiration  of  every  thoughtful  mind. 

Now,  it  would  be  well  if,  when  we  are  in  difficulty  as  to  the 
path  of  duty,  or  in  severe  trial,  or  in  prospect  of  arduous  la- 
bor, we  would  secure  that  a  band  of  friends  should  pray  on 
our  behalf.  Depend  upon  it,  "  more  things  are  wrought  by 
prayer  than  the  world  dreams  of."  These  words  of  Jesus, 
"  If  any  two  of  you  shall  agree  on  earth  as  touching  any- 
thing which  ye  shall  ask  in  my  name,  it  shall  be  given  you," 
constitute  the  charter  of  the  prayer -meeting.  There  is  a 
special  promise  to  united  prayer.  "  The  effectual  fervent 
prayer  of  a  righteous  man  availeth  much  ;"  but  the  united 
prayers  of  a  company  of  like-minded  believers  avail  more. 
Indeed,  as  the  poet  has  said,  "  The  whole  round  earth  is 
bound  by  prayer  about  the  feet  of  God."  Let  us,  then,  en- 
deavor to  secure  that  our  friends  are  given  to  prayer ;  for  if 
they  can  help  us  in  no  other  way,  they  can  help  us  in  the 
best  of  all  ways — by  their  united  supplications  on  our  behalf. 

But,  in  the  second  place,  we  have  an  illustration  here  of 
the  workings  of  gratitude.  The  moment  he  had  received 
the  revelation,  and  ere  yet  he  went  with  it  to  Nebuchadnez- 
zar, Daniel  poured  out  his  heart  in  thanksgiving  to  God. 
He  "blessed  the  God  of  heaven,"  saying,  "Blessed  be  the 
name  of  God  for  ever  and  ever :  for  wisdom  and  might  are 
his  :  and  he  changeth  the  times  and  the  seasons  :  he  re- 
moveth  kings,  and  setteth  up  kings  :  he  giveth  wisdom  unto 
the  wise,  and  knowledge  to  them  that  know  understanding  : 
he  revealeth  the  deep  and  secret  things  :  he  knoweth  what 
is  in  the  darkness,  and  the  light  dwelleth  with  him.  I  thank 
thee,  and  praise  thee,  O  thou  God  of  my  fathers,  who  hast 
given  me  wisdom  and  might,  and  hast  made  known  unto  mc 
what  we  desired  of  thee  :  for  thou  hast  now  made  known 
unto  us  the  king's  matter." 


The  Forgotten  Dream.  37 

How  many,  when  they  have  got  the  blessing  for  wliich 
they  asked,  forget  to  be  grateful  for  it !  "  Were  there  not 
ten  cleansed,  but  where  are  the  nine  ?"  We  cry  when  we 
are  in  extremity ;  but  when  the  terror  passes,  we  forget  to 
give  thanks  to  him  who  has  removed  its  cause.  Let  the 
conduct  of  Daniel  here  shame  us  for  our  ingratitude  to  God 
for  the  many  blessings  which  in  answer  to  our  prayers  he 
has  bestowed  upon  us ;  and  let  us  seek  to  show  our  thanks, 
not  only  in  the  utterance  of  words,  but  also  in  the  offering 
of  our  hearts  and  lives  as  incense  unto  him. 
/  In  the  third  place,  we  have  here  an  illustration  of  the 
devout  humility  of  genuine  piety.  Daniel  is  careful  to  let 
Nebuchadnezzar  understand  that  he  has  not  received  the 
secret  from  God  for  any  excellence  about  himself.  He 
fears  to  stand  between  the  king  and  Jehovah.  He  gives 
all  the  glory  to  the  Most  High.  There  is  always  a  modesty 
about  true  greatness,  and  you  may  know  whether  or  not  pi- 
ety is  genuine  by  inquiring  if  it  be  characterized  by  humil- 
ity. The  good  man  will  never  seek  to  hide  God  from  the 
view  of  his  fellow-men.  He  will  endeavor  to  make  his  light 
shine,  but  he  will  not  make  it  shine  so  as  to  draw  attention 
to  himself.  He  will  arrange  it  so  that  its  rays  will  all  con- 
verge in  God,  and  men  shall  glorify  the  Father  in  heaven. 

See  how  beautifully  John  the  Baptist  was  clothed  with 
that  humility.  When  the  Jews  came  to  him,  asking,  "  Who 
art  thou?"  and  almost  importuning  him  to  answer  that  he 
was  the  Messiah,  he  would  not  yield  to  their  desire,  but 
said,  "  I  am  not  the  Messiah,  but  I  am  sent  before  him  to 
prepare  his  way ;"  and  when,  afterward,  men  sought  to  pro- 
voke his  envy  of  Jesus  by  telling  him  how  the  prophet  of 
Nazareth  was  attracting  more  followers  than  he,  his  only 
answer  was,  "  He  must  increase,  but  I  must  decrease  !" 

So,  again,  when  Paul  was  writing  to  the  church  at  Cor- 
inth, he   manifested  the    same   beautiful   humility,  saying. 


38  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

"Who  then  is  Paul,  and  who  is  Apollos,  but  ministers  by 
whom  ye  beheved,  even  as  the  Lord  gave  to  every  man  ?  I 
have  planted,  Apollos  watered ;  but  God  gave  the  increase. 
So  then  neither  is  he  that  planteth  anything,  neither  he  that 
watereth ;  but  God  that  giveth  the  increase." 

Such  a  spirit  is  lovely  everywhere,  but  it  is  especially  be- 
coming in  the  minister  of  Christ.  It  is  his  high  privilege 
to  preach  the  Gospel,  and  he  should  seek  to  do  it  so  as  to 
hide  himself.  Standing  in  the  halo  round  his  Lord,  men 
should  not  see  him,  but  only  the  glory  of  the  Saviour.  They 
should  "  hear  the  voice,  but  see  no  man."  Oh  for  more  of 
the  spirit  of  Daniel  everywhere,  but  especially  in  the  pul- 
pits of  the  land  ! 

Fourthly,  we  have  here  an  illustration  of  faithful  friend- 
ship. When  Daniel  was  exalted,  he  did  not  forget  his  com- 
panions. Knit  to  Hananiah,  Mishael,  and  Azariah  by  con- 
genial tastes,  as  well  as  by  the  ties  of  country  and  relig- 
ion, he  had  become  to  them  a  friend  indeed ;  and  they  had 
shown  their  deep  interest  in  and  attachment  to  him,  not 
only  in  sharing  his  protest  against  the  diet  of  the  college, 
but  also  in  praying  for  him  at  his  special  request.  It  was 
meet,  therefore,  that  he  should  remember  them  in  his  pros- 
perity. He  did  no  more  than  his  duty  toward  them  in 
speaking  for  their  elevation,  while,  at  the  same  time,  he  did 
a  service  to  the  king  by  introducing  to  him  men  of  such  in- 
tegrity and  ability. 

But  this  conduct  is  not  common ;  for  many  are  like  the 
chief  butler,  and  in  the  hour  of  their  exaltation  forget  the 
Joseph  to  whom,  in  their  time  of  humiliation,  they  had  been 
beholden.  Multitudes  are  moved  with  envy,  so  that  they 
cannot  think  of  others  rising ;  and  even  if  they  have  been 
formerly  indebted  to  them,  they  do  their  best  to  keep  them 
down.  But  there  was  no  such  feeling  in  the  breast  of  Dan- 
iel.    The  prosperity  of  his  friends  was  his,  and  he  would 


The  Forgotten  Dream.  39 

have  them  sharers  with  him  in  the  honorable  position  to 
which  their  prayers  had  contributed  to  raise  him.  "  A  man 
that  hath  friends  must  show  himself  friendly;"  and  there  is 
a  friend  "that  sticketh  closer  than  a  brother." 

I  cannot  conclude  without  a  word  in  reference  to  Dan- 
iel's greater  Lord — Jesus  Christ — of  whom  he  prophesied. 
He,  too,  has  been  exalted,  God  has  given  him  a  name 
which  is  above  every  name.  He  is  seated  at  the  right  hand 
of  power  —  King  of  kings  and  Lord  of  lords  —  and  in  his 
exaltation  all  his  people  will  share  ;  for  it  is  written  they 
shall  "reign  with  him."  Not,  however,  because  they  have 
been  of  service  to  him,  as  were  his  three  friends  to  Daniel, 
but  because  he  has  "  set  his  love  upon  them,  and  they  have 
trusted  in  him."  Let  me  ask  3'ou,  my  hearer,  if  there  is  a 
throne  yonder  for  you .-'  Do  you  love  Jesus  ?  Are  you  of 
his  friends  ?  Are  you  praying  for  the  advancement  of  his 
cause  and  the  coming  of  his  kingdom .''  Are  you  working 
for  his  glory }  Do  you  identify  yourself  with  him  ?  Are 
you  one  with  him  ?  Then  for  you  there  is  a  crown  of  right- 
eousness, and  a  seat  upon  his  throne.  But  if  you  repudiate 
his  allegiance,  and  will  have  none  of  his  love ;  if  you  tram- 
ple his  grace  underfoot,  and  insult  his  love  by  your  base  in- 
gratitude— then  will  he  destroy  you  as  his  enemies,  and  con- 
sign you  to  everlasting  woe.  Ah !  why  would  you  make 
him  an  enemy,  when  you  may  enjoy  eternally  the  blessings 
of  his  friendship  ? 


III. 

THE  DREAM  RECO  VERED  AND  INTER- 
PRETED. 

Daniel  ii.,  29-49. 

THE  vision  which  had  so  troubled  Nebuchadnezzar  was 
that  of  a  huge  image.  It  had  a  certain  unity  about  it, 
inasmuch  as  it  resembled  a  human  figure.  Yet  it  had  also 
a  strangely  composite  character,  inasmuch  as  its  different 
parts  were  made  of  different  materials.  The  head  was  of 
gold,  the  breast  and  arms  of  silver,  the  belly  and  the  thighs 
of  brass,  the  legs  of  iron,  and  the  feet  part  of  iron  and  part 
of  clay.  But  for  all  so  stable  as  it  seemed,  the  colossal  fig- 
ure was  not  destined  to  endure,  for  as  the  monarch  gazed 
,he  saw  severed,  without  hands,  from  its  native  rock,  a  stone, 
which  smote  the  image  and  broke  it  in  pieces.  Then  the 
stone  itself  gradually  increased  in  size  until  it  assumed  the 
appearance  of  a  mountain  and  filled  the  whole  earth. 

This  huge  image  was  by  Daniel  interpreted  to  mean  what 
we  may  call  the  world-power.  Its  unity  represents  the  fact 
that  the  different  empires  of  earth  are  only  parts  of  one 
great  whole.  They  are  all  animated  by  the  same  spirit. 
They  are  all  founded  on  human  ambition.  They  are  all 
antagonistic  to  God  and  to  his  truth.  The  body  has  many 
members,  but  all  these  members  are  moved  by  one  will. 
So  the  successive  world  monarchies  have  all  been  pervaded 
by  one  spirit,  which  has  striven  through  them  to  gain  its 
own  ends. 

The  separate  parts  of  which  the  image  was  composed 


The  Dream  Recovered  and  Interpreted.         41 

were  intended,  according  to  Daniel's  interpretation  of  them, 
to  symbolize  the  characters  of  the  different  earthly  empires, 
and  the  order  in  which  they  were  to  appear.  The  head  of 
gold  was  the  Babylonian  monarchy  of  which  Nebuchadnez- 
zar was  the  king.  It  was  the  head,  as  the  first  in  the  order 
of  time.  It  was  of  gold,  as  distinguished  for  the  greatest 
magnificence.  In  Isaiah*  Babylon  is  styled  "  the  golden 
city ;"  elsewhere  it  is  denominated  by  the  same  prophet 
"  the  glory  of  kingdoms,  the  beauty  of  the  Chaldee's  excel- 
lency;"  "the  lady  of  kingdoms;"  while  Jeremiah  refers  to 
it  as  "abundant  in  treasures,"  and  as  "the  j^raise  of  the 
whole  earth."  Its  kings  had  enriched  its  capital  with  the 
spoils  of  conquest,  and  adorned  it  with  the  products  of  oth- 
er lands,  as  well  as  with  works  of  art  and  gardens  of  beauty, 
so  that  it  was  regarded  as  one  of  the  wonders  of  the  world. 
Most  appropriately,  therefore,  does  Daniel  say  to  Nebuchad- 
nezzar, "  Thou  art  this  head  of  gold." 

"  The  breast  and  the  arms  of  silver  "  represent  what  is 
known  in  history  as  the  Medo-Persian  Empire,  the  founda- 
tion of  which  was  laid  by  Cyrus  when  he  conquered  Baby- 
Ion.  It  lasted  for  about  two  hundred  years,  and  extended 
through  the  reigns  of  those  kings  who  so  frequently  at- 
tempted the  invasion  of  Greece,  and  whose  defeats  have 
given  immortality  to  the  names  of  Leonidas  and  Themisto- 
cles,  and  made  Thermopylae  and  Salamis  renowned.  It  is 
said  here  to  be  inferior  to  the  Babylonian  kingdom,  and  this 
may  refer  either  to  the  absence  of  that  magnificence  for 
which  Nebuchadnezzar  was  famous,  or  to  the  degenerate 
character  of  the  Persian  rulers  ;  for,  as  Prideauxf  has  said, 
Vv'ith  the  exception  of  Cyrus  himself,  the  kings  of  Persia 


*  Isa.  xiii.,  19  ;  xiv.,  4 ;  xlvii.,  5  ;  Jer.  li.,  13,  41. 
t  "  Connection  of  the  History  of  the  Old  and  New  Testament,"  vol.  i., 
p.  107. 


42  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

were  •'  the  worst  race  of  men  that  ever  governed  an  em- 
pire." Or  it  may  refer  to  the  disastrous  defeats  sustained 
by  the  Persians  in  the  military  camiDaigns  which  they  un- 
dertook. Their  plans  for  conquest  were  foolishly  contrived 
and  madly  carried  out,  so  that  they  resulted  frequently  in 
inglorious  failures.  In  this  respect,  therefore,  there  was  an 
evident  appropriateness  in  speaking  of  Persia  as  inferior  to 
Babylon. 

"The  belly  and  the  thighs  of  brass"  represent  the  Gre- 
cian Empire,  which  rose  to  pre-eminence  in  the  clays  of 
Alexander  the  Great,  and  which  latterly  assumed  the  form 
of  two  separate  monarchies,  the  one  in  Syria  under  the  de- 
scendants of  Seleucus,  and  the  other  in  Egypt  under  the 
Ptolemies.  This  kingdom  is  not  inaptly  symbolized  by 
brass,  inasmuch  as  the  Greeks  were  famous  for  their  brazen 
armor.  It  is  declared  that  this  third  empire  should  "bear 
rule  over  all  the  earth,"  but  the  words  must  be  taken  some- 
what hyperbolically.  Alexander,  indeed,  commanded  that 
he  should  be  styled  "  the  King  of  the  Whole  World  ;"  but 
he  had  not  really  conquered  the  whole  earth.  Still,  as  he 
had  authority  over  large  territories  in  Europe,  Asia,  and 
Africa — that  is  to  saj',  in  all  the  divisions  of  the  world  then 
known — the  description  may  be  legitimately  applied  to  him. 

Hence  all  admit  that  this  third  empire  is  the  Macedoni- 
an ;  but  it  has  been  disputed  whether  the  kingdoms  of  the 
Seleucidce  and  the  Ptolemies  are  to  be  reckoned  as  in  some 
sort  a  continuation  of  the  Macedonian  Empire,  or  are  to  be 
regarded  as  themselves  constituting  the  fourth  monarchy 
here  symbolized  by  the  legs  of  iron,  and  the  feet  part  of 
iron  and  part  of  clay. 

After  careful  examination,  I  have  adopted  the  opinion 
that  these  two  kingdoms  are  here  viewed  as  constituting  a 
continuation  of  the  Macedonian  Empire,  for,  as  Dr.  Pusey 
has  remarked,  "  these  two  dynasties,  ever  at  variance  with 


The  Dream  Recovered  and  Interpreted.         43 

one  another,  had  no  unity ;  they  were  in  no  sense  a  kii'\g- 
dom,  except  as  they  were  connected  witia  the  great  empire- 
plan  of  Alexander.  They  were  continuations  of  Greek  pre- 
dominance over  the  nations  of  Oriental  character  in  Asia 
Minor,  Egypt,  Syria,  and  Assyria.  They  carried  out  that 
interpenetration  of  the  Greek  and  Oriental  nations  which 
Alexander  must  have  contemplated  ;  they  Hellenized  Egypt 
and  Western  Asia,  and  unknowingly  prepared  the  way  for 
the  Gospel  by  diffusing,  through  the  means  of  their  Greek 
cities,  the  language  in  which  it  was  to  be  given,"*  We  re- 
gard, therefore,  the  belly  and  thighs  of  brass  as  symbolizing 
the  Macedonian  Empire ;  first,  one  under  Alexander,  and 
then  ultimately  branching  into  two  main  divisions  under  the 
Seleucidae  in  the  north  and  the  Ptolemies  in  the  south. 

"  The  legs  of  iron  "  represent  the  Roman  power,  which 
was  remarkable  for  nothing  so  much  as  for  strength.  Its 
legions  carried  everj'thing  before  them,  reducing  indepen- 
dent kingdoms  into  conquered  provinces,  and  holding  the 
proudest  nations  under  the  most  galling  tribute.  From 
Parthia,  in  the  East,  to  Gaul,  and  even  to  Britain,  in  the 
West,  its  power  extended,  and  everywhere  it  was  a  thing  of 
iron,  crushing  and  breaking  all  that  stood  in  its  way.  But 
in  process  of  time,  its  strength  was  weakened  by  the  admixt- 
ure of  inferior  elements  with  its  original  population  ;  so  that 
while  the  legs  are  of  iron,  the  feet  are  part  of  iron  and  part 
of  potter's  clay.  That  which  was,  in  one  sense,  the  proof 
of  its  greatness,  became,  in  another,  the  precursor  of  its  de- 
cay. By  its  martial  might  Rome  conquered  many  nations ; 
but  the  mingling  of  these  diverse  and  degenerate  peoples 
with  its  noble  citizenship  deteriorated  the  empire  as  a  whole, 
and  made  it,  in  the  end,  an  easy  prey  to  the  Northern  hordes 
of  barbarians  by  whom  it  was  ultimately  overrun.     Every 

*  "Lectures  on  Daniel  the  Prophet,"  pp.  67,  68. 


44  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

reader  of  Gibbon's  history  is  familiar  with  this  view  of  the 
case,  but  we  may  be  pardoned  for  reproducing  this  passage 
from  his  pages  in  support  of  it : 

"  During  the  first  four  ages,  the  Romans  in  the  laborious 
school  of  poverty  had  acquired  the  virtues  of  war,  and  gov- 
ernment by  the  vigorous  exertion  of  those  virtues ;  and,  by 
the  assistance  of  fortune,  they  had  obtained,  in  the  course 
of  the  three  succeeding  centuries,  an  absolute  empire  over 
many  countries  of  Europe,  Asia,  and  Africa.  The  last  hun- 
dred years  had  been  consumed  in  apparent  prosperity  and 
internal  decline.  The  nation  of  soldiers,  magistrates,  and 
legislators  who  composed  the  thirty-five  tribes  of  the  Ro- 
man people  was  dissolved  into  the  common  mass  of  man- 
kind, and  confounded  with  the  millions  of  servile  provin- 
cials who  had  received  the  name  without  imbibing  the  spirit 
of  Romans.  A  mercenary  army,  levied  among  the  subjects 
and  barbarians  of  the  frontier,  was  the  only  order  of  men 
who  preserved  and  abused  their  independence.  By  their 
tumultuary  election,  a  Syrian,  a  Goth,  or  an  Arab  was  exalt- 
ed to  the  throne,  and  invested  with  despotic  powers  over 
the  conquests  and  over  the  country  of  the  Scipios.  The 
limits  of  the  Roman  Empire  still  extended  from  the  West- 
ern Ocean  to  the  Tigris,  and  from  Mount  Atlas  to  the  Rhine 
and  Danube.  To  the  undiscerning  eye  of  the  vulgar,  Philip 
appeared  a  monarch  no  less  powerful  than  Hadrian  or  Au- 
gustus had  formerly  been.  The  form  was  still  the  same, 
but  the  animating  health  and  vigor  were  fled.  The  indus- 
try of  the  people  was  discouraged  and  exhausted  by  a  long 
series  of  oppressions.  The  discipline  of  the  legions  which 
alone,  after  the  extinction  of  every  other  virtue,  had  propped 
the  greatness  of  the  State,  was  corrupted  by  ambition,  or  re- 
laxed by  the  weakness  of  the  emperors.  The  strength  of 
the  frontiers,  which  had  always  consisted  in  arms  rather 
than  in  fortifications,  was  insensibly  undermined,  and  the 


The  Dream  Recovered  and  Interpreted.         45 

fairest  provinces  were  left  exposed  to  the  rapaciousness  or 
ambition  of  the  barbarians,  who  soon  discovered  the  dechne 
of  the  Roman  Empire."* 

The  fourth  kingdom,  therefore,  symbolized  by  the  legs 
and  feet  of  the  image,  was  the  Roman  power,  which,  in  its 
early  days,  was  strong  as  iron,  but  in  its  later  history  had 
elements  of  weakness,  as  if  the  iron  had  been  mixed  with 
clay.  The  toes  of  the  image,  like  the  ten  horns  of  the  beast 
afterward  seen  by  Daniel,  are  believed  by  some  to  represent 
the  separate  monarchies  into  which  the  Roman  Empire  came 
to  be  divided,  and  much  learned  ingenuity  has  been  exerted 
by  expositors  in  seeking  to  identify  these  ten  kingdoms  in 
modern  Europe ;  but  that  is  a  branch  of  the  investigation 
for  which  I  have  little  relish,  and  I  prefer  to  leave  with  you 
the  general  impression  which  I  have  made,  rather  than  to 
confuse  your  minds  by  an  enumeration  which,  after  all,  must 
be  mainly  conjectural. 

We  come  now  to  the  kingdom  represented  by  the  stone 
which  destroyed  the  image.  It  will  be  at  once  apparent 
that  this  figure  is  intended  to  symbolize  the  kingdom  of  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ ;  but  the  great  question  among  modern 
interpreters  is,  whether  the  cutting-out  of  the  stone  from  the 
mountain  and  its  coming  into  collision  with  the  image  is  to 
be  understood  of  the  first  advent  of  Christ,  which  is  already 
past,  or  of  his  second  coming,  which  is  yet  future.  Dr.  Tre- 
gelles,  who  may  be  taken  as  speaking  for  the  whole  pre-mil- 
lenarian  school,  says,  "  The  falling  of  the  stone  on  the  im- 
age must  mean  destroying  judgment  on  the  fourth  Gentile 
power,  not  gradual  evangelization  of  it  by  grace ;  and  the 
destroying  judgment  cannot  be  dealt  by  Christians,  for  they 
are  taught  to  submit  to  the  powers  that  be ;  so  that  it  must 
be  dealt  by  Christ  himself  at  his  coming  again.     We  live 

*  Gibbon,  chap.  vii.     Quoted  also  by  Barnes,  "  Commentary,"  in  loco. 


46  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

under  the  divisions  of  the  Roman  Empire  which  began  four- 
teen hundred  years  ago,  and  which,  at  the  time  of  his  com- 
ing, shall  be  definitely  ten.  All  that  had  failed  in  the  hand 
of  man  shall  then  pass  away,  and  that  which  is  kept  in  his 
own  hand  shall  be  introduced."* 

Now,  it  must  be  confessed  that  much  may  be  said  in  fa- 
vor of  this  view,  and  that  it  has,  besides,  a  wonderful  fascina- 
tion for  the  devout  soul  that  is  distressed  by  the  prevalence 
of  evil  in  the  world.  In  particular,  it  seems  to  harmonize 
with  the  statement  that  the  stone  came  into  collision  with 
the  feet  of  the  image.  If  the  reference  be  to  the  first  com- 
ing of  Christ,  how,  it  may  be  asked,  could  Jesus  be  said  to 
strike  against  a  form  of  the  Roman  Empire  which  did  not 
then  exist  ?  And  how  can  the  breaking  in  pieces  of  the  im- 
age symbolize  the  peaceful  character  of  his  mission  and  the 
quiet  progress  of  his  cause  ? 

But,  in  answer  to  the  first  of  these  inquiries,  we  may  say, 
that  as  the  world-power  is  here  represented  by  one  ideal  im- 
age, whatever  comes  against  any  single  portion  of  the  image 
may  be  viewed  as  directed  against  it  as  a  whole ;  and  so 
the  advent  of  Christ,  though  it  came  before  the  final  divis- 
ion of  the  Roman  Empire,  may  be  regarded  as  coming  into 
collision  with  the  spirit  by  which  every  form  of  that  empire 
was  animated.  Besides,  the  words  "  in  the  days  of  these 
kings  "  refer  not  to  the  kings  of  the  Roman  Empire  alone, 
but  to  all  the  kings  represented  by  this  composite  image, 
and  the  meaning  is  that  some  time  during  the  history  of 
those  kings  thus  symbolized  the  God  of  heaven  should  set 
up  his  kingdom. 

The  second  question  may  be  answered  by  such  a  criti- 
cism on  the  thirty -fifth  verse  as  that  of  Mr.  Barnes,  who 

*  "  Remarks  on  the  Prophetic  Visions  of  the  Book  of  Daniel,"  pp. 
24,  25,  by  S.  P.  Tregelles.     London:  Baxter,  1S52. 


The  Dream  Recovered  and  Interpreted.         47 

says  :  "  The  connection  here  and  the  whole  statement  would 
seem  to  demand  the  sense  of  a  continued  or  prolonged  smit- 
ing, or  of  repeated  blows  rather  than  a  single  concussion. 
The  great  image  was  not  only  thrown  down,  but  there  was 
a  subsequent  process  of  comminution  independent  of  what 
would  have  been  produced  by  the  fall.  A  fall  would  only 
have  broken  it  into  large  blocks  or  fragments,  but  this  con- 
tinued smiting  reduced  it  to  powder.  This  Avould  imply, 
therefore,  not  only  a  single  shock,  but  some  cause  continu- 
ing to  operate  until  that  which  had  been  overthrown  was 
effectually  destroyed,  like  a  vast  image  reduced  to  impalpa- 
ble powder."* 

But  whether  or  not  these  explanations  be  satisfactor}"-, 
there  seems  to  me  to  be  one  fatal  objection  to  the  view  of 
those  who  take  the  severing  of  the  stone  from  the  mountain 
to  mean  the  second  coming  of  Christ ;  for  if  that  interpreta- 
tion be  correct,  it  will  follow  that  the  kingdom  of  the  Mes- 
siah has  not  yet  been  founded  on  the  earth.  I  know,  in- 
deed, that  Dr.  Tregelles  and  his  school  would  draw  a  dis- 
tinction between  the  kingdom  of  grace  and  the  kingdom  of 
glory,  and  would  make  the  vision  here  refer  to  the  setting-up 
of  the  kingdom  of  glory.  But  that  does  not  mend  the  mat- 
ter ;  for  if  that  be  true,  then  it  will  follow  that  in  a  vision 
given  to  Nebuchadnezzar  with  the  view  of  making  known 
to  him  what  should  be  hereafter  there  is  positively  no  allu- 
sion to  the  most  important  fact  in  the  annals  of  humanity — 
the  Incarnation — a  fact,  moreover,  which  was  to  have  such  a 
momentous  bearing  on  the  after-history  of  every  nation  on 
the  earth.  That  the  vision,  altogether  ignoring  the  first  com- 
ing of  Christ,  should  leap  forward  to  his  second  advent,  ap- 
pears to  me  to  be  utterly  inconceivable,  the  more  especially 
as  the  phraseology  here  used  by  Daniel  to  describe  the  king- 

*  "  Notes  on  Daniel,"  in  loco. 


48  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

dom  of  the  stone  is  identical  with  that  employed  by  Isaiah 
in  predicting  the  birth  of  the  Messiah :  '*  Of  the  increase  of 
his  government  and  peace  there  shall  be  no  end,  upon  the 
throne  of  David,  and  upon  his  kingdom,  to  order  it,  and  to 
establish  it  with  judgment  and  with  justice  from  henceforth 
even  forever  ;"*  and  also  with  that  addressed  by  the  angel 
to  Mary  at  the  Annunciation :  "  Thou  shalt  bring  forth  a 
son,  and  shalt  call  his  name  Jesus.  He  shall  be  great,  and 
shall  be  called  the  Son  of  the  Highest ;  and  the  Lord  God 
shall  give  unto  him  the  throne  of  his  father  David  :  and  he 
shall  reign  over  the  house  of  Jacob  forever ;  and  of  his  king- 
dom there  shall  be  no  end."t  Moreover,  John  the  Baptist 
heralded  the  coming  of  the  Redeemer  in  these  words  :  "  Re- 
pent ye,  for  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  at  hand."|  Jesus 
himself  began  his  public  ministry  with  this  declaration : 
"  The  time  is  fulfilled,  and  the  kingdom  of  God  is  at  hand  ;"§ 
and  throughout  his  career  as  an  instructor  he  was  contin- 
ually uttering  parables  in  illustration  of  "  the  kingdom  of 
God"  or  "the  kingdom  of  heaven."  Nay,  to  such  an  ex- 
tent did  he  dwell  on  the  idea  of  his  royalty  that  he  was  ac- 
cused of  setting  himself  up  against  Cffisar ;  and  when  Pilate 
asked  him  if  he  were  a  king,  he  did  not  repudiate  the  digni- 
ty, but  only  said,  "  My  kingdom  is  not  of  this  world. "|| 

We  cannot,  therefore,  accept  as  correct  any  interpretation 
of  this  vision  which  requires  us  to  believe  that  the  kingdom 
of  heaven  has  not  yet  been  set  up  in  the  world,  or  which,  in 
its  eagerness  to  unfold  what  shall  be  when  the  Lord  comes 
the  second  time,  compels  us  to  ignore  the  grace  and  the  glo- 
ry of  his  first  appearance.  Hence,  other  difficulties  notwith- 
standing, I  take  the  severance  of  the  stone  from  the  moun- 
tain to  denote  the  coming  of  Christ  into  the  world,  and  the 

*  Isa.  ix.,  7.  t  Luke  i.,  31-33.  X  Matt,  iii.,  i. 

§  Mark  i.,  15.  ||  John  xviii.,  36. 


The  Dream  Recovered  and  Interpreted.         49 

collision  of  the  stone  with  the  image  to  mean  the  founding 
by  the  Lord  of  that  spiritual  kingdom  which  is,  in  its  prin- 
ciples, antagonistic  to  all  the  world-powers,  and  which  will 
ultimately  subdue  them  all.  Thus  viewed,  the  vision  which 
Daniel  recovered  and  interpreted  suggests  to  us  many  inter- 
esting things  concerning  the  kingdom  of  Christ,  which,  how- 
ever, I  can  dwell  on  but  for  a  little  season. 

There  is,  in  the  first  place,  its  superhuman  origin.  The 
stone  was  "  cut  out "  of  the  mountain  without  hands. 
There  was  no  natural  cause  for  its  severance.  It  did  not 
fall  by  its  own  weight,  through  the  force  of  gravitation,  or 
by  accident,  for  it  was  "  cut."  And  yet,  the  cutting  was  the 
work  of  no  ordinar}'  agent,  for  it  was  cut  "without  hands." 
So  the  foundation  of  Christ's  kingdom  was  the  result  of  no 
development  of  human  character,  but  rather  of  the  bringing 
of  a  new  spiritual  and  heavenly  power  into  the  world.  Left 
to  itself,  the  world-power  deteriorates,  and  that  image  whose 
head  is  of  gold  has  feet  part  of  iron  and  part  of  clay.  That 
is  the  sort  of  development  of  human  character  which  is  seen 
in  the  history  of  the  empires  of  earth.  If,  therefore,  the 
Lord  Jesus  had  been  the  product  merely  of  his  age,  he  could 
not  have  risen  above  his  age  ;  rather,  following  the  law  of 
development  which,  in  moral  things  at  least,  the  human  race, 
left  to  itself,  has  always  illustrated,  he  would  have  fallen  be- 
low his  age.  By  the  miraculous  manner  of  his  birth,  how- 
ever, and  the  mysterious  constitution  of  his  person  as  God 
and  man,  in  two  distinct  natures,  the  ordinary  course  and 
chain  of  natural  causes  was  broken  in  upon,  and  a  new 
and  divine  agency  was  brought  to  bear  upon  the  kingdoms 
of  the  earth.  But  for  this  supernatural  intervention,  they 
would  have  gone  on  unchecked,  each  rising  into  impor- 
tance, and  then  falling  to  pieces  through  the  workings  of 
its  own  inherent  corruption,  or  through  the  rise  of  another 
upon  its  ruins.     But  now  a  corrective  influence  has  come 

3 


50  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

into  operation,  and  its  very  difference  from  all  that  went 
before  it  is  a  proof  of  its  superhuman  origin.  The  stone  is 
striking,  one  after  another,  earthly  institutions  and  organi- 
zations, and  by-and-by  the  Divine  influence  which  it  repre- 
sents will  permeate  all  ranks  and  conditions  and  kingdoms 
of  men. 

There  is,  in  the  second  place,  the  comparative  feebleness 
of  its  beginning.  The  language  of  the  vision  indicates  that 
the  stone  grew  from  a  small  size  until  it  became  a  huge 
mountain.  Frequently  earthly  kingdoms  have  had  very  in- 
significant beginnings ;  but,  usually,  that  which  has  given 
them  the  last  accession  of  greatness  has  been  some  mighty 
movement  of  its  armies  or  some  grand  achievement  of  its 
statesmen.  Thus,  to  take  a  recent  instance,  every  one  is 
familiar  with  the  almost  contemptible  sovereignty  of  the 
first  of  the  Hohenzollern  dynasty;  but  when,  a  few  years 
ago,  while  yet  he  was  laying  siege  to  the  first  city  on  the 
continent  of  Europe,  the  King  of  Prussia  caused  himself,  in 
the  palace  of  a  conquered  monarch,  to  be  proclaimed  Em- 
peror of  Germany,  the  pomp  and  ceremony  of  the  occasion 
were  so  great  that  the  correspondent  of  the  leading  English 
journal  finished  his  description  of  the  event  with  these  high- 
sounding  words,  "  This  will  live  in  history."  That  is  how 
empires  are  founded  among  men. 

But  let  that  be  contrasted  with  the  meeting  of  a  few  Gali- 
lean peasants  in  an  upper  room,  surrounding  a  Teacher  who, 
within  a  few  hours,  was  to  be  ruthlessly  dragged  from  their 
fellowship  and  nailed  to  a  cross.  Hear  him  saying  unto 
them,  *'  I  appoint  unto  you  a  kingdom,  as  my  Father  hath 
appointed  unto  me  ;  that  ye  may  eat  and  drink  at  my  table 
in  my  kingdom,  and  sit  on  thrones  judging  the  twelve  tribes 
of  Israel,"*  and  you  have  a  vivid  idea  of  the  circumstances 

*  Luke  xxii.,  29. 


The  Dream  Recovered  and  Interpreted,         51 

in  which  the  proclamation  of  the  "  l^ingdom  of  heaven  "  was 
made.  Poor,  despised,  contemptible  to  human  view,  its  sub- 
jects were  —  too  contemptible  at  first  almost  to  be  perse- 
cuted, but  destined  in  the  end  to  overcome  the  world  by  the 
weapon  of  their  love. 

Behold  that  little  Jewish -looking  man  of  weak  bodily 
presence,  stepping  ashore  from  the  boat  which  has  just 
come  to  the  harbor  of  Neapolis  from  Troas.  He  is  accom- 
panied by  a  travelling  doctor  and  a  quiet  youth.  He  asks 
some  one  on  the  pier  to  show  him  the  way  to  Philippi,  and 
then  he  sets  out  in  the  direction  indicated  to  him.  Who  is 
he  ?  What  is  he  going  to  do  ?  Surely  he  is  nobody  of  much 
importance,  and  cannot  have  any  great  woi'k  in  charge  !  So 
we  might  judge,  according  to  appearance.  Yet  it  is  the 
apostle  Paul,  bringing  wath  him  the  Gospel  to  Europe,  and 
going  to  found  Christ's  kingdom  in  the  classic  land  of 
Greece.  A  few  days  after  this,  two  of  these  men  were  in 
prison  ;  and  yet,  ere  they  were  fixed  in  the  stocks,  they  had 
already  smitten  the  world-image,  for  in  their  healing  of  the 
Pythoness  and  in  the  conversion  of  Lydia  the  evil  power  of 
the  world  had  received  the  first  of  that  series  of  blows  which 
it  has  been  receiving  at  intervals  ever  since,  and  which  ere 
long  shall  crush  it  until  it  shall  become  like  "  the  chaff  of 
the  summer  threshing-floors." 

There  is,  in  the  third  place,  the  gradualness  of  its  prog- 
ress. The  stone  grew  until  it  became  a  mountain.  Not 
all  at  once  was  this  development  made.  It  was  a  work  of 
time.  And  so  in  the  kingdom  which  it  symbolizes  advance- 
ment was  by  degrees.  Beginning  at  Jerusalem,  its  first 
preachers  sought  their  earliest  converts  among  their  fellow- 
countrjanen ;  but  as  the  seed  sloughs  off  its  outward  shell 
when  it  begins  to  grow,  the  Christian  Church  very  soon  put 
off  its  Jewish  restrictiveness  and  found  a  root  in  Gentile 
cities. 


52  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

We  see,  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  how,  from  one  centre 
of  influence  to  another,  Paul  went  on  and  up,  until  at  length 
he  made  his  way  to  Rome,  and  had  his  converts  both  in  the 
"  palace  of  the  Cassars  "  and  in  the  legions  of  the  Empire. 
Then,  within  a  few  centuries,  it  overspread  Europe ;  and 
though  during  the  mediaeval  times  it  seemed  to  be  standing 
still,  it  put  forth  new  energy  at  the  era  of  the  Reformation. 
Since  that  date  it  has  gone  on  advancing ;  but  probably  the 
most  rapid  strides  have  been  taken  by  it  during  the  years 
of  the  present  century.  Almost  within  the  limits  of  two 
generations,  the  Bible  has  been  translated  into  two  hundred 
different  languages,  and  missionaries  have  gone  to  the  East 
and  to  the  West,  to  the  North  and  to  the  South,  and  have 
in  many  instances  created  a  new  civilization  by  their  efforts. 
Every  month,  almost,  is  bringing  fresh  evidences  of  their 
success ;  and  within  the  last  few  days  I  have  heard  tidings 
from  Japan  which  have  filled  my  heart  with  joy.  Two  years 
ago  I  told  from  this  pulpit  the  story  of  Joseph  Nee  Sima,* 
who  ran  away  from  Japan  in  his  eagerness  to  learn,  and 
came,  in  the  wondrous  providence  of  God,  to  this  country, 
where  he  became  a  Christian,  and  was  educated  as  a  mis- 
sionary. He  left  a  few  months  ago  for  his  native  land,  and 
in  the  Missmnary  Herald  for  Marchf  there  is  a  letter  de- 
scribing his  welcome  in  his  father's  house.  His  parents 
and  friends  have  renounced  idolatry;  and  he  writes,  "Be- 
sides my  home  friends,  my  humble  labor  within  three  weeks 
in  this  place  has  been  wonderfully  blessed.  I  have  preached 
several  times  in  a  school -house  in  this  town,  and  also  to 
small  audiences  in  different  families.  A  week  before  last 
Sabbath  I  preached  to  a  large  audience  in  a  Buddhist  tem- 
ple.    All  the  priests  in  this  community  came  and  listened 

*  See  "David,  King  of  Israel,"  pp.  128,  129. 
t  In  the  year  1875. 


The  Dream  Recovered  and  Interpreted.         53 

to  the  preaching  of  the  new  rehgion."  "  Is  not  my  word  a 
fire,  saith  the  Lord,  and  a  hammer  that  breaketh  the  rock  in 
pieces  ?"  Here  is  another  smiting  process  going  on.  The 
mountain  is  increasing ;  for  this  is  but  a  specimen  of  what 
is  going  on  in  many  lands  ;  and  soon  the  oracle  of  Isaiah 
will  be  fulfilled  :  "  The  mountain  of  the  Lord's  house  shall 
be  established  on  the  top  of  the  mountains,  and  all  nations 
shall  flow  unto  it." 

There  is,  fourthly,  its  universal  extent.  The  mountain 
"  filled  the  whole  earth."  "  The  knowledge  of  the  Lord 
shall  cover  the  earth."  There  are  few  things  more  clearly 
revealed  in  prophecy  than  this.  Again  and  again  is  it  de- 
clared that  "  all  the  ends  of  the  earth  shall  remember  and 
turn  unto  the  Lord,  and  all  the  kindreds  of  the  nations  do 
homage  before  him."  To  the  superficial  observer,  indeed, 
it  may  seem  as  if  this  were  the  most  visionary  idea  that  ever 
entered  the  mind  of  man  ;  but  when  he  takes  a  broader  and 
deeper  view,  he  may  see  reason  to  alter  his  opinion. 

Astronomers  calculate  the  orbit  and  period  of  a  planet  by 
taking  observations  of  it  at  different  and  distant  intervals, 
and  from  the  comparison  of  these  they  can  predict  with  un- 
erring accuracy  both  its  course  and  its  reappearance.  Now, 
if  we  will  take  our  estimate  of  the  future  history  of  the  king- 
dom of  Christ  on  similar  principles,  we  shall  be  led  to  re- 
gard the  universal  diffusion  of  the  Gospel  as  among  the 
most  certain  of  future  events.  Let  your  first  observation  be 
in  the  days  of  Paul,  your  second  in  the  time  of  Constantine, 
your  third  in  the  era  of  the  Reformers,  your  fourth  in  the 
generation  of  the  Wesleys  and  the  Whitefields,  and  your 
fifth  at  the  present  hour,  and  you  will  be  led  to  conclude 
that  if  only  the  churches  of  Christ  will  do  their  duty  aright, 
we  are  not  so  very  far  from  the  universal  triumph  of  the 
Gospel. 

I  saw  in  an  English  newspaper,  the  other  day,  that  a 


54  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

grain  of  wheat,  which,  five  years  ago,  had  been  picked  up 
by  an  admirer  of  royalty  as  it  fell  from  the  hand  of  the 
Prince  of  Wales,  had,  by  being  sown,  produced,  in  that  short 
interval,  as  much  as  could  be  drilled  into  sixteen  acres  of 
land.  And  if  we  would  only  catch  as  eagerly,  and  sow  as 
diligently,  the  seed  that  falls  from  the  hand  of  the  Prince 
of  Peace,  we  might  soon  be  able  with  the  increase  to  cover 
the  whole  earth.  "There  shall  be  a  handful  of  corn  in 
the  earth  on  the  top  of  the  mountains ;  the  fruit  thereof 
shall  shake  like  Lebanon."  Ah  !  if  we  but  prized  our  priv- 
ilege as  fellow-workers  with  God  in  this  matter,  we  should 
be  found  more  fervent  in  our  prayers,  more  diligent  in  our 
labors,  and  more  liberal  in  our  gifts,  for  this  great  cause. 

There  is,  fifthly,  the  perpetual  duration  of  this  kingdom. 
"  It  shall  never  be  destroyed ;"  and  "  it  shall  not  be  left 
to  other  people."  "No  weapon  that  is  formed  against  it 
shall  prosper ;  and  every  tongue  that  riseth  up  in  judgment 
against  it  God  will  condemn."  Often  the  kings  of  the  earth 
have  set  themselves,  and  the  rulers  have  taken  counsel  to- 
gether, against  it,  and  sometimes  it  has  almost  seemed  as  if 
they  had  destroyed  it ;  but  still,  like  its  great  Lord,  it  has 
come  forth  with  new  power  and  majesty  from  the  grave  in 
which  they  dreamed  it  had  been  buried,  and  gone  forth  to 
grander  triumphs  than  ever  before.  All  the  cruelties  that 
ingenuity  could  devise,  and  all  the  efforts  that  earthly  power 
could  put  forth,  have  been  tried  against  it.  Men  have  set 
up  gibbets  and  stakes  for  the  destruction  of  those  who  were 
laboring  for  its  advancement,  but  in  vain.  It  has  in  it  the 
immortality  of  its  Lord.  Earthly  might  can  only  overthrow 
that  which  is  like  unto  itself.  An  army  may  destroy  an 
army,  but  by  what  external  power  can  you  annihilate  love  ? 
You  may  kill  the  man,  but  you  cannot  kill  the  principle. 
Phoenix-like,  that  will  ever  rise  again  from  the  ashes  of  the 
martyr ;  and  the  persecutor,  though  to  superficial  eyes  he 


Thk  Dream  Recovered  and  Interpreted.         55 

seems  the  victor,  does  only  in  reality  own  himself  the  van- 
quished. Thus  the  perpetuity  of  this  kingdom  is  intimate- 
ly associated  with  its  character,  and  that  again  with  its 
origin. 

Probably  no  one  ever  knew  more  of  what  imperial  power 
could  effect  than  did  the  First  Napoleon,  and  so  his  testimo- 
ny may  be  of  value  here.  "  I  know  men,"  said  he,  in  con- 
versation with  General  Bertrand,  "  and  Jesus  Christ  is  not  a 
man.  Superficial  minds  see  a  resemblance  between  Christ 
and  the  founder  of  empires  and  the  gods  of  other  religions. 
That  resemblance  does  not  exist.  There  is  between  Christ 
and  all  other  religions  whatsoever  the  distance  of  infinity ; 
from  the  first  day  to  the  last,  he  is  the  same — always  the 
same,  majestic  and  simple,  infinitely  firm  and  infinitely  gen- 
tle." And  then  he  goes  on  to  contrast  him  with  Alexan- 
der, with  Caesar,  and  with  himself,  in  that  they  founded  their 
empires  on  power,  but  he  on  love.  The  emperor  was  right ; 
and  in  that  difference  lies  the  hope  of  the  world,  for  love  is 
a  principle  which  is  simply  indestructible,  and  the  self-sacri- 
fice of  the  cross  demonstrates  the  perpetuity  of  the  throne. 


IV. 

THE  NON-CONFORMISTS  OF  BABYLON. 

Daniel  iii. 

AFTER  the  recovery  and  interpretation  of  his  dream  by 
Daniel,  Nebuchadnezzar  appears  to  have  been  deeply 
impressed  with  the  greatness  of  that  God  to  whose  revela- 
tion of  the  secret  the  young  captive  ascribed  his  success. 
But  these  feelings  soon  subsided.  They  were  "  as  a  morn- 
ing cloud  and  as  the  early  dew ;"  for  the  next  time  we  hear 
of  him  in  the  prophet's  narrative  is  in  connection  with  a 
magnificent  religious  festival,  which  he  held  at  the  inaugura- 
tion of  a  colossal  idol,  reared  by  him  in  honor  of  his  favor- 
ite divinity,  Bel-Merodach. 

Nor  need  we  be  surprised  at  this,  as  if  it  were  at  all  un- 
common among  ourselves.  Who  has  not  known  a  history 
like  this  ?  By  some  signal  providence,  or  in  some  unmis- 
takable manner,  Jehovah  has  confronted  a  careless  man, 
Vv'ho,  startled  by  the  discovery  at  once  of  his  own  littleness 
and  of  God's  majesty,  has  been  profoundly  moved.  Sud- 
den as  a  lightning-flash  in  the  night  season,  the  conviction 
of  the  dread  reality  and  importance  of  eternity  has  shot 
through  his  soul.  He  speaks  on  these  momentous  matters 
as  he  never  did  before.  He  seeks  to  honor  God's  minis- 
ters by  every  means  in  his  power.  In  one  word,  he  seems, 
to  the  merely  human  onlooker,  to  be  thoroughly  converted. 
But  after  a  while,  the  impressions  which  appeared  to  be  so 
deep  are  effaced,  and  he  is  seen  rearing  a  huge  image,  not 
necessarily  in  the  shape  of  a  golden  statue,  but  in  the  form 
of  some  glory,  or  greatness,  or  pleasure  before  which  he 


The  Non-conformists  of  Babylon.  57 

bows  himself,  and  at  whose  shrine  he  expects  that  others 
also  will  do  homage. 

Let  us  beware,  therefore,  lest,  in  condemning  the  Babylo- 
nian monarch  here,  we  be  not  at  the  same  time  pronounc- 
ing sentence  upon  ourselves.  We  profess  to  believe  in 
and  honor  the  God  and  Father  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ ; 
we  ascribe  to  him  in  words  "  the  greatness,  and  the  power, 
and  the  glory,  and  the  victory,  and  the  majesty ;"  we  add 
our  "Amen"  to  the  Doxology,  which  says,  "To  him  be  glo- 
ry and  dominion."  But  is  there  no  golden  image  that  has 
our  real  allegiance  ?  Are  we  not  prone  to  raise  even  above 
Jehovah  our  success  in  business,  or  our  pre-eminence  in  so- 
ciety, or  our  position  in  the  State,  or  our  place  in  the  esti- 
mation of  our  fellow-men  ?  Are  we  not  all  too  apt  to  reck- 
on these  things,  or  things  like  these,  the  objects  of  our  chief 
interest,  the  ends  for  which  we  labor ;  yea,  the  ambitions  in 
our  intense  devotion  to  which  we  are  wearing  out  our  lives 
"  in  a  melancholy  and  thankless  martyrdom  ?"  While,  there- 
fore, we  are  thoroughly  alive  to  the  sin  of  Nebuchadnezzar 
here,  let  us  search  and  see  that  no  similar  idol  has  a  place 
in  our  hearts  or  in  our  homes,  in  our  counting-rooms  or  in 
our  stores,  in  our  churches  or  in  our  pulpits. 

The  date  of  the  erection  of  this  image  by  Nebuchadnez- 
zar is  not  mentioned  in  the  record  ;  but  some  have  supposed 
that  several  years  elapsed  between  the  events  narrated  in 
the  second  chapter  and  those  now  introduced  to  the  reader 
Prideaux*  places  the  holding  of  this  high  festival  after  Neb- 
uchadnezzar's return  from  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  with 
the  blinded  Zedekiah  among  his  captives ;  and  it  is  by  no 
means  improbable  that  he  meant  on  that  special  occasion 
to  exalt  his  god  above  the  Jehovah  of  the  Hebrews. 

*  "  Connection  of  the  History  of  the  Old  and  New  Testament,"  vol.  i., 
p.  82. 


58  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

The  image  was  of  gold.  If  this  means  that  it  was  com- 
posed of  a  solid  mass  of  the  precious  metal,  then  an  enor- 
mous amount  of  treasure  must  have  been  required  for  its 
construction.  Still,  taking  the  resources  of  the  empire  into 
consideration,  there  is  no  impossibility  involved  even  in  that 
view  of  the  case.  But  as  the  very  terms  here  employed  are 
elsewhere  used  to  denote  that  which  was  simply  overlaid 
with  gold,*  we  may  conclude  that  this  immense  image  was 
formed  of  wood  covered  with  a  thin  layer  of  gold. 

Its  height  was  sixty  cubits  and  its  breadth  six  cubits  ;  but 
as  the  length  of  the  cubit  is  uncertain,  it  is  impossible  to 
determine  with  accuracy  what  these  figures  would  represent 
in  feet  and  inches.  The  proportion  of  the  height  to  the 
breadth  is  as  ten  to  one ;  but  as  the  usual  ratio  in  the  case 
of  the  human  figure  is  that  of  six  to  one,  it  is  conjectured 
that  the  number  sixty  here  includes  the  height  of  the  pedes- 
tal as  well  as  that  of  the  image,  properly  so  called. 

The  idol  was  set  up  in  the  plain  of  Dura,  which,  as  it  is 
said  to  belong  to  the  province  of  Babylon,  must  be  sought 
for  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  city.  For  this  reason  I  can- 
not accept  the  view  of  those  who  would  identify  it  with  the 
place  called  Dur,  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Tigris,  and  one 
hundred  and  twenty  miles  from  Babylon.  More  probable 
is  the  opinion  of  Oppert,  who  thinks  he  has  found  the  scene 
of  this  festival  in  the  vicinity  of  the  mound  of  Dowair,  or 
Duair,  where  also  he  discovered  the  pedestal  of  a  colossal 
statue. t 

To  the  inauguration  of  this  great  image  Nebuchadnezzar 
summoned  representatives  from  all  the  provinces  of  his  em- 
pire, in  the  persons  of  those  who  held  high  office  under  him. 

*  See  Pusey's  "  Lectures  on  Daniel  the  Prophet,"  p.  445,  note ;  also 
Fairbairn's  "Dictionary,"  article  Nebuchadnezzar  ;  Exod.  xxx.,  i,  3  ; 
xxxix.,  38. 

t  Smith's  "  Dictionary,"  sub  voce. 


The  Nonconformists  of  Babylon.  59 

Much  ingenious  antiquarian  research  has  been  expended  on 
the  investigation  of  the  particular  grade  of  ofBce  denoted 
by  each  term  employed  in  the  second  and  third  verses  of 
this  chapter ;  but  it  would  serve  no  good  purpose  to  enter 
upon  such  a  subject  here.  Let  it  be  merely  remarked  that 
it  was  the  Babylonian  custom  to  leave  over  each  conquered 
province  a  prince  belonging  to  the  vanquished  nation,  while 
;  they  and  the  peoples  whom  they  governed  were  brought  un- 
der tribute  to  the  empire.  Thus  even  after  the  captivity  of 
Judah,  the  rulers  of  that  province  were  Jews,  most  of  whom 
belonged  to  the  royal  family,  though  some  of  them  were  of 
inferior  rank.  Now,  this  peculiarity  in  the  nationality  of 
these  officials  will,  I  think,  give  us  an  insight  into  the  mo- 
tive of  Nebuchadnezzar  in  bringing  them  together  at  this 
time,  and  commanding  them  to  worship  the  image  which  he 
had  set  up.  He  wished  to  assert  his  sovereignty  over  them, 
and,  through  them,  over  all  his  subjects  in  the  most  absolute 
manner.  He  knew,  moreover,  that  nothing  so  contributes 
to  the  perpetuation  of  nationality,  and  the  desire  for  inde- 
pendence in  a  conquered  province,  as  the  maintenance  of 
its  old  historic  religion,  hallowed  to  the  people  by  the  as- 
sociations of  the  past.  So,  wishing  to  weld  the  many  king- 
doms of  his  empire  into  one  homogeneous  whole,  he  deter- 
mined to  ask  from  them  all  conformity  to  the  idol-worship 
which  he  himself  preferred.  No  doubt,  therefore,  this  re- 
ligious service  had  a  political  design.  It  was  not  merely 
his  enthusiasm  for  his  god,  though  that  was  great,  that  im- 
pelled Nebuchadnezzar  to  make  the  decree  which  gathered 
all  his  subordinates  to  the  plain  of  Dura.  His  religious  fer- 
vor, as  in  the  case  of  multitudes  since  his  day,  was  subordi- 
nated to  imperial  policy ;  and  unity  of  worship  was  sought 
only  that  it  might  contribute  to  the  political  unity  of  the 
empire. 

Some,  indeed,  have  thought  that  the  image  here  set  up 


6o  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

was  designed  to  symbolize  the  monarch  himself;  and  it  is 
beyond  doubt  that  among  the  Persians,  as  in  later  days 
among  the  Romans,  the  emperor  was  invested  with  a  sort 
of  quasi-divinity ;  but  it  is  more  in  harmony  with  what  we 
know  of  Nebuchadnezzar  from  other  sources  to  suppose 
that  he  intended  this  idol  to  represent  Bel-Merodach.  Mr. 
Rawlinson,  whose  brother  has  earned  for  himself  a  world- 
wide reputation  in  connection  with  the  deciphering  of  the 
cuneiform  inscriptions  on  the  Assyrian  monuments,  thus 
speaks  of  the  description  given  in  these  old  stone  books  of 
this  king :  "  We  can  only  observe  as  peculiar  to  Nebuchad- 
nezzar a  disposition  to  rest  his  fame  on  his  great  works 
rather  than  on  his  military  achievements ;  and  a  strong  re- 
ligious spirit  manifesting  itself  especially  in  a  direction 
which  is  almost  exclusive  to  one  particular  god.  Though 
his  own  tutelary  deity  and  that  of  his  father  was  Nebo  (Mer- 
cury), yet  his  worship,  his  ascriptions  of  praise,  his  thanks- 
givings, have  in  almost  every  case  for  their  object  the  god 
Merodach.  Under  his  protection  he  placed  his  son  Evil- 
Merodach.  Merodach  i-s  '  his  lord  ;'  his  '  great  lord  ;'  the 
'  joy  of  his  heart ;'  the  great  lord  who  has  appointed  him  to 
the  empire  of  the  world,  and  has  confided  to  his  care  the  far- 
spread  people  of  the  earth ;  the  great  lord  who  has  estab- 
lished him  in  strength,  etc.  One  of  the  first  of  his  own  titles 
is,  'he  who  pays  homage  to  Merodach.'  Even  when  restor- 
ing the  temples  of  other  deities,  he  ascribes  the  work  to  the 
suggestion  of  Merodach,  and  places  it  under  his  protection. 
We  may  hence  explain  the  appearance  of  a  sort  of  mono- 
theism mixed  with  polytheism  in  the  Scriptural  notices  of 
him.  While  admitting  a  qualified  divinity  in  Nebo,  Nana, 
and  other  deities  of  his  countr}',  he  maintained  the  real 
monarchy  of  Bel-Merodach,  He  was  to  him  '  the  supreme 
chief  of  the  gods ;'  the  most  ancient,  the  king  of  the  heav- 
ens and  the  earth.     It  was  his  image  or  symbol  undoubted- 


The  Nonconformists  of  Babylon.  6i 

ly  which  was  set  up  in  the  plain  of  Dura,  and  his  house  in 
which  the  sacred  vessels  of  the  Temple  were  treasured.  He 
seems  at  some  times  to  have  identified  this  his  supreme 
god  with  the  God  of  the  Jews,  and  at  other  times  to  have 
regarded  the  Jewish  God  as  one  of  the  local  and  inferior 
divinities  over  whom  Merodach  ruled."* 

Thus,  his  religious  proselytism  combined  with  his  politi- 
cal ambition  to  stimulate  him  to  convoke  this  great  assem- 
bly, and  to  call  on  every  one  present  at  it  to  worship  the 
image  which  he  had  set  up. 

The  signal  for  the  worshipping  of  this  huge  idol  was  to 
be  given  by  the  sounds  of  music.  Over  the  names  of  these 
instruments  in  the  original,  great  learned  warfare  has  been 
w^aged,  and  much  ink  has  been  shed.  Some  of  them,  it  has 
been  alleged,  are  of  Greek  origin ;  and,  as  the  Greek  lan- 
guage was  not  known  at  that  early  date  in  Babylon,  it  fol- 
lows—  so  objectors  reason — that  the  Book  of  Daniel,  in 
which  these  terms  are  found,  could  not  have  been  written 
until  the  times  of  the  Maccabees,  when  Greek  words  and 
Greek  instruments  were  well  known  among  the  Jews.  The 
answers  to  this  argument  may  be  seen  at  large  in  Dr.  Pu- 
sey's  "  Lectures  on  Daniel  the  Prophet."t  I  content  myself 
now  with  giving  you  the  gist  of  the  matter  in  the  following 
sentences  :  "  Asia,  from  the  Tigris  westward,  was  systemati- 
cally intersected  with  lines  of  commerce.  Sardis  and  Baby- 
lon were  professedly  luxurious.  It  were  rather  a  marvel  if 
the  golden,  music-loving  city  had  not  gathered  to  itself  for- 
eign musical  instruments  of  all  sorts,  or  if,  in  a  religious  in- 
auguration at  Babylon,  all  the  variety  of  music  which  it  could 
command  had  not  been  united  to  grace  the  festival  and  bear 
along  the  minds  and  imaginations  of  the  people.    The  Greek 

*  Smith's  "Dictionary,"  article  Nebuchadnezzar. 

t  Pusey's  "  Lectures  on  Daniel  the  Prophet,"  pp.  24-33. 


62  Daniel  the  Beloved, 

names  are  but  another  instance  of  the  old  recognized  fact 
tliat  the  name  of  an  import  travels  with  the  thing.  There  is 
nothing  stranger  in  our  finding  Greek  instruments  of  music 
in  Nebuchadnezzar's  time  at  Babylon  than  in  the  Indian 
names  of  Indian  animals  and  of  an  Indian  tree  having 
reached  Jerusalem  under  Solomon."* 

When  these  musical  instruments  were  sounded,  there  was 
to  be  a  universal  prostration  before  the  image  ;  and  if  any 
one  refused  to  render  this  homage,  he  was  "  in  the  same 
hour  "  to  be  cast  into  a  burning  fiery  furnace.  This  was  a 
punishment  distinctively  Babylonian,  just  as  the  placing  of 
men  in  the  dens  of  wild  animals  was  a  cruelty  distinctively 
Persian  ;  and  so,  in  the  nature  of  the  penalty  here  denounced 
against  disobedience  we  have  an  incidental  corroboration  of 
the  authenticity  of  the  history.  We  know  nothing  of  the 
sort  of  furnace  that  is  here  referred  to,  and  cannot  tell 
whether  it  had  any  resemblance  to  our  modern  smelting 
fires.  As  its  intensity  could  be  increased  by  the  employ- 
ment of  certain  means  not  here  specified,  it  would  seem  to 
have  been  enclosed  in  some  way  ;  as  four  persons  could 
walk  to  and  fro  in  it,  we  conclude  that  it  must  have  been  of 
immense  size ;  and  as  these  persons  could  be  seen  in  it  by 
spectators  who  were  far  enough  away  from  it  to  be  beyond 
the  reach  of  harm  from  it,  we  infer  that  it  must  have  been 
so  placed  as  to  be  open  to  the  inspection  of  persons  at  a 
distance.  It  was  a  fearful  thing  to  face ;  but  even  with  this 
dreadful  fate  before  them,  there  w^ere  some  who  had  the 
courage  to  refuse  obedience  to  the  king's  command.  Dan- 
iel's three  friends,  Hananiah,  Mishael,  and  Azariah,  would 
not  bow  the  knee  to  the  image  which  the  king  had  erected. 
They  were  willing,  in  all  civil  things,  to  be  good,  law-abiding 
subjects  of  Nebuchadnezzar ;  but  in  a  matter  of  this  sort, 

*  Puscy's  "  Lectures  on  Daniel  the  Prophet,"  pp.  26,  27. 


The  Non-conformists  of  Babylon.  63 

they  felt  that  they  owed  allegiance  to  a  higher  King,  who 
had  said  to  them,  "Thou  shalt  have  no  other  gods  before 
me.  Thou  shalt  not  make  unto  thee  any  graven  image,  or 
any  likeness  of  anything  that  is  in  heaven  above,  or  that  is 
in  the  earth  beneath,  or  that  is  in  the  water  under  the  earth  : 
thou  shalt  not  bow  down  thyself  to  them,  nor  serve  them  ;"* 
and  so,  without  making  any  great  demonstration  of  their 
procedure,  they  simply  refrained  from  doing  as  the  king  re- 
quired. 

But  keen-eyed  Envy  was  closely  watching  how  they  would 
conduct  themselves.  Their  rapid  elevation  to  posts  of  hon- 
or and  emolument,  over  the  heads  of  many  older  men,  had 
made  them  many  enemies.  When,  therefore,  it  was  ob- 
served that  they  did  not  fall  down  and  worship  the  image, 
certain  of  the  Chaldeans,  moved  with  jealousy,  and  forget- 
ful of  the  fact  that  they  themselves  had  owed  their  lives  on 
a  former  occasion  to  the  interposition  of  Daniel  and  his 
friends,  informed  the  monarch  of  their  contumacy. 

When  he  heard  their  report,  Nebuchadnezzar  was  en- 
raged. Here  was  a  defying  of  his  authority  by  those  who, 
he  perhaps  imagined,  owed  more  to  him  than  many  others, 
and  so  their  disobedience  might  wear,  in  his  eyes,  the  color 
of  ingratitude.  But  he  would  not  be  in  haste.  He  would 
give  them  another  opportunity  to  consider  their  position  be- 
fore he  consigned  them  to  the  fire.  Hence  he  closely  ques- 
tioned them,  and  issued  anew  the  command  that  at  the  ap- 
pointed signal  they  should  prostrate  themselves  before  the 
image,  saying  also,  in  the  haughtiness  of  his  heart,  "  If  ye 
fall  down  and  worship  the  image  which  I  have  made,  well : 
but  if  ye  worship  not,  ye  shall  be  cast  the  same  hour  into 
the  midst  of  a  burning  fiery  furnace  ;  and  who  is  that  God 
that  shall  deliver  you  out  of  my  hands  ?" 

*  E.\ocl.  x>:.,  3-5. 


64  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

But  they  were  still  unmoved,  and  said,  in  the  strength  of 
their  faith,  "  We  are  not  careful  to  answer  thee  in  this  mat- 
ter. If  it  be  so,  our  God  whom  we  serve  is  able  to  deliver 
us  from  the  burning  fiery  furnace,  and  he  will  deliver  us  out 
of  thine  hand,  O  King.  But  if  not,  be  it  known  unto  thee, 
O  King,  that  Ave  will  not  serve  thy  gods,  nor  worship  the 
golden  image  which  thou  hast  set  up." 

This  answer,  so  calm,  so  dignified,  so  courageous,  filled 
the  monarch  with  such  rage  that  he  commanded  that  the 
furnace  should  be  heated  seven  times  more  than  it  was 
wont  to  be  heated,  and  after  the  three  young  men  had  been 
bound,  he  ordered  that  they  should  be  cast  into  the  fire,  the 
heat  of  which  was  so  great  that  the  men  who  flung  them 
into  the  furnace  were  themselves  consumed. 

And  now  it  might  have  been  thought  that  there  was  an 
end  of  the  matter ;  but  no  !  for  as  the  king  looked  on  he 
saw  the  three  men  begin  to  move  about  in  the  furnace,  ac- 
companied by  a  fourth,  whose  aspect  was  so  heavenly  that 
he  seemed  to  him  to  be  like  a  "  son  of  the  gods."  The  sin- 
gularity of  the  spectacle  filled  Nebuchadnezzar  with  aston- 
ishment and  dismay ;  and  going  as  near  as  he  could  to  the 
mouth  of  the  furnace,  he  cried,  "  Shadrach,  Meshach,  and 
Abednego,  ye  servants  of  the  most  high  God,  come  forth 
and  come  hither ;"  and  they  came  forth  unharmed,  for  the 
fire  had  no  power  over  their  bodies,  "  nor  was  an  hair  of 
their  head  singed,  neither  were  their  coats  changed,  nor  had 
the  smell  of  fire  passed  upon  them." 

And  who  was  this  mysterious  one,  the  fourth  in  the  fire, 
to  whom,  as  it  would  seem,  they  owed  their  deliverance  .-• 
Nebuchadnezzar,  describing  him,  says,  "  The  form  of  the 
fourth  is  like  the  son  of  God."  Now,  this  language  would 
almost  make  it  appear  that  the  king  knew  something  of  the 
Messiah  who  is  called  in  the  Old  Testament  sometimes  by 
this  name  ;  but  when  we  give  the  literal  translation,  "  the 


The  Non-conformists  of  Babylon.  65 

form  of  the  fourth  is  like  a  son  of  the  gods,"  we  see  that  he 
was  speaking  like  a  heathen,  and  meant  only  to  describe 
the  dignified  and  exalted  deportment  of  him  whom  he  thus 
characterized. 

Still,  though  the  Babylonian  monarch  had  no  conception 
of  the  Messiah,  and,  indeed,  thought  of  this  person  (as  we 
see  in  verse  twenty-eight)  as  an  angel,  we  have  no  doubt 
whatever  that  he  was  "  the  angel  of  the  covenant,"  of  whom 
we  so  often  read  in  the  Hebrew  Scriptures,  and  whose  ap- 
pearances were  in  reality  so  many  anticipations  of  the  In- 
carnation in  the  person  of  Christ.  He  with  whom  Abra- 
ham pleaded  for  guilty  Sodom,  and  with  whom  Jacob  wres- 
tled at  Peniel  till  the  dawning  of  the  day ;  he  whose  fiery 
glory  filled  the  bush  without  consuming  it  as  Moses  turned 
aside  to  see  the  sight ;  he  who  appeared  to  Joshua  as  the 
captain  of  the  host  of  the  Lord,  and  to  Manoah  and  his 
wife  as  the  wonderful  one ;  he  who  spoke  to  Gideon  at  the 
wine-press  of  Ophrah,  and  to  David  at  the  threshing-floor 
of  Araunah,  was  the  same  great  and  gracious  one  who 
walked  in  the  furnace  with  his  persecuted  servants  here, 
and  was  the  second  person  of  the  glorious  Trinity.  To 
him,  therefore,  to  whom  we  are  beholden  for  our  great  sal- 
vation, these  Hebrew  non- conformists  were  indebted  for 
their  miraculous  deliverance,  and  so  the  king  was  not  wrong 
in  ascribing  to  him  the  glory  of  their  safety ;  though  he  is 
not  to  be  commended  in  the  fact  that  he  sought  to  enforce 
the  duty  of  reverencing  the  name  of  Jehovah  by  civil  pains 
and  penalties,  not  less  reprehensible  in  kind,  though  less 
cruel  in  degree,  than  those  which  he  had  denounced  on  such 
as  would  not  worship  his  image. 

But  where  was  Daniel  all  this  while  ?  Some  have  sup- 
posed that  he  was  present,  and  was  one  of  those  who  re- 
fused to  bow  the  knee  to  the  idol,  but  that  his  enemies, 
knowing  his  position  with   the  monarch,  feared  to   bring 


66  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

an  accusation  against  him  first,  and  so  began  with  his 
three  friends,  reserving  him  for  a  subsequent  attack.  But 
I  cannot  accept  that  explanation.  Daniel  was  altogether 
too  noble  a  man  and  too  chivalrous  a  friend  to  seek  to  es- 
cape in  such  a  way.  I  am  confident  that  if  he  had  been 
present,  he  would  at  once  have  taken  his  place  beside  his 
former  companions,  and  identified  himself  with  their  cause. 
Hence  I  rather  believe  that  he  was  absent  from  Babylon  at 
this  time  on  some  business  of  importance,  and  so  was  pre- 
vented from  bearing  testimony  with  his  fellow-students  to 
the  unity  and  spirituality  of  God,  and  standing  out  against 
the  sin  of  idolatry.  Perhaps,  too,  his  absence  may  help  to 
account  for  the  forwardness  of  the  Chaldeans  to  present 
their  impeachment.  But  however  we  may  account  for  the 
silence  of  the  record  regarding  him,  we  may  be  altogether 
certain  that  there  was  no  trimming  about  him,  and  that  no 
stain  of  dishonor  rested  on  him  for  his  non-appearance  at 
this  time.     He  was  not  the  man  to  be  ashamed  of  his  Lord. 

And  now,  passing  from  the  mere  exposition  of  the  narra- 
tive, let  us  read  its  lessons  in  the  light  of  modern  life. 

We  have  here,  in  the  first  place,  a  specimen  of  religious 
intolerance.  God  alone  is  "  Lord  of  the  conscience."  A 
man's  faith  and  worship  are  things  which  lie  between  him- 
self and  his  Creator.  What  I  shall  believe  concerning  God, 
and  how  I  shall  worship  God,  no  man  may  presume  to  de- 
termine for  me.  These  are  matters  for  myself  alone  ;  and 
no  one,  whether  friend  or  foe,  whether  priest  or  king,  has 
any  authority  in  that  domain.  This  liberty  is  my  birthright 
as  a  man.  My  conscience  is  my  glory ;  and  to  enslave  that, 
if  it  were  possible,  would  make  me  ten  thousand  times  more 
a  bondman  than  to  chain  me  to  the  galley,  or  to  consign  me 
to  weary  drudgery  under  some  task-master's  eye.  The  lat- 
ter is  the  slavery  of  the  body ;  the  former  is  an  inthralment 
of  the   soul.      Therefore  all   arguments   that   tell  against 


The  Non-conformists  of  Babylon.  67 

slave-holding  tell  with  increased  power  against  religious  in- 
tolerance. But  to  the  Christian  it  wears  also  a  sacrilegious 
aspect.  He  regards  himself  as  "  not  his  own."  He  keeps 
his  conscience,  therefore,  for  Christ.  Hence  religious  intol- 
erance is  to  him  not  only  an  interference  with  individual 
liberty,  but  also  an  infringement  of  the  right  of  Christ  to 
the  absolute  sovereignty  of  his  soul.  No  doubt  it  may  be 
said  that  Christians  are  commanded  to  be  "  subject  to  the 
higher  powers  ;"  and  they  are  told  that  "whosoever  resisteth 
the  power,  resisteth  the  ordinance  of  God."  But  we  must 
interpret  the  precept  of  the  Apostles  by  their  practice.  Now 
we  find  Peter  saying  before  the  Jewish  rulers,  "  We  ought  to 
obey  God  rather  than  man  ;"  and  we  know  that  Paul  at  last 
endured  a  martyr's  death,  because  he  would  not,  at  the  bid- 
ding of  the  Roman  Emperor,  abjure  the  Lord  Jesus  as  his 
Redeemer  and  King. 

These  precepts  which  I  have  quoted  from  the  apostolic 
epistles  have  respect  to  civil  things,  for  which  alone  civil 
government  was  instituted,  and  in  which  alone  it  can  fi-nd 
its  legitimate  province.  In  the  matter  of  religion,  the  State 
has  no  authority,  and  it  ought,  therefore,  to  leave  every  man 
to  his  own  conscience.  The  kingdoms  and  communities  of 
the  world  have  been  long  in  learning  these  principles ;  and 
there  is  hardly  a  nation  or  even  a  religious  denomination 
now  existing  which  has  not  at  some  point  in  its  past  history 
been  guilty  of  practising,  or  of  advocating,  persecution  for 
the  holding  of  some  peculiar  religious  opinions.  The  Prot- 
estants may  not  imagine  that  Roman  Catholics  alone  have 
indulged  in  it ;  nor  are  the  hands  of  the  Puritans  them- 
selves clean  in  this  matter.  But  now  let  us  hope  that  we 
are  entering  upon  a  new  epoch ;  and  as  we  execrate  here 
the  tyranny  of  Nebuchadnezzar,  let  us  resolve  that  we  shall 
never  be  parties  to  the  attempt,  by  whomsoever  made,  to 
coerce  the  consciences  of  men  by  denouncing  civil  pains 


68  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

and  penalties  upon  them  for  the  holding  of  certain  religious 
beliefs. 

But,  in  the  second  place,  we  see  here  how  religious  intol- 
erance is  to  be  met.  These  three  young  men  simply  refused 
to  do  what  Nebuchadnezzar  commanded ;  or,  in  modern 
phrase,  they  met  his  injunction  with  "passive  resistance." 
The  clear  issue  raised  in  their  minds  was  this,  "  God  says 
one  thing,  but  Nebuchadnezzar  says  another :  which  shall 
we  obey  ?"  And  they  could  not  hesitate  a  moment  for  a 
reply.  Some  might  have  said  to  them,  "  You  make  too 
much  of  it;  here  is  only  a  question  of  loyalty  to  the  king. 
Your  bowing  before  the  image  is  not  understood  as  an  act 
of  worship  to  it,  but  as  an  act  of  honor  and  obedience  to 
the  monarch.  And  surely,  after  all  he  has  done  for  you,  it 
will  be  ungracious  to  refuse  that."  But  they  would  not  tol- 
erate any  such  casuistry.  Nebuchadnezzar  already  knew 
their  loyalty.  They  had  shown  that  in  more  substantial 
ways  to  him.  But  this  thing  was  simply  and  only  idolatry, 
and  they  would  not  dishonor  God  in  order  to  be  loyal  to 
the  King  of  Babylon.  They  did  not  attack  his  position. 
They  simply  said  "  No  "  to  him,  and  they  said  it  as  if  they 
meant  to  abide  by  it. 

Now,  with  similar  firmness  and  humility  we  should  meet 
intolerance  yet.  It  has  often  been  debated  whether  on  re- 
ligious grounds  alone  subjects  or  citizens  would  be  war- 
ranted in  taking  up  arms  against  the  government  of  a  coun- 
try; and  with  the  cases  of  the  English  Puritans  and  Scot- 
tish Covenanters  before  my  mind,  I  will  not  undertake  to 
decide  it  one  way  or  other.  But  there  is  no  such  difficulty 
about  passive  resistance.  That  is  always  justifiable ;  nay, 
it  is  always  demanded  of  us  when  conscience  is  outraged,  if, 
at  least,  we  would  not  be  guilty  of  high  treason  against  him 
who  is  our  rightful  Lord. 

The  noble  spirits  who  composed  the  Society  of  Friends 


The  Non-conformists  of  Babylon.  69 

were  among  the  earliest  in  more  modern  times  to  under- 
stand the  meaning  of  "Hberty  of  conscience,"  and  to  vindi- 
cate it,  not  only  for  themselves,  but  also  for  those  who  dif- 
fered from  them.  Their  great  instrument  was  passive  re- 
sistance, and  working  on  with  that,  they  became  the  pio- 
neers of  progress  in  the  march  of  the  nations  toward  perfect 
religious  freedom.  We  may  smile  occasionally  at  the  oddity 
of  their  dress  or  at  the  quaintness  of  their  speech ;  we  may 
think,  too,  that  they  carry  some  of  their  principles  a  shade 
too  far.  But  they  have  taught  us  all  what  liberty  of  con- 
science means ;  and  by  their  quiet  bearing,  as  they  refused 
obedience  to  odious  commands,  they  have  shown  us  how  in- 
tolerance is  to  be  met.  Let  us  give  honor  to  the  broad-brim 
for  this ;  and  in  these  days,  when  a  British  statesman  has 
dealt  a  crushing  blow  to  the  arrogant  pretensions  of  the  Vat- 
ican, and  eloquently  defined  the  boundary  between  civil  alle- 
giance and  loyalty  to  conscience,  let  us  not  forget  the  early 
martyrs,  to  whom,  in  this  matter,  we  are  all  indebted — men 

"Who  lived  unknown  till  persecution 
Chased  them  into  fame,  and  dragged  them 
Up  to  heaven  ;  whose  blood  was  shed 
In  confirmation  of  the  noblest  claim — 
Our  claim  to  feed  upon  immortal  truth, 
To  soar,  and  to  anticipate  the  skies." 

We  have  here,  thirdly,  an  illustration  of  the  support  which 
Jesus  gives  to  his  followers,  when  they  are  called  to  suffer 
for  his  sake.  These  three  young  men  were  entirely  deliv- 
ered, even  as  Peter  was  taken  out  of  the  prison  at  a  later 
day.  But  God's  servants  are  not  always  brought  out  thus 
from  their  tribulations.  Still,  they  are  always  supported 
through  them.  What  is  the  martyrology  of  the  Church  but 
just  a  commentary  on  these  words,  "  My  grace  is  sufficient 
for  thee  ;  my  strength  is  made  perfect  in  weakness  .'"'  From 
the  days  when  Paul  and  Silas  sung  at  midnight  in  the  pris- 
on at  Philippi,  down  to  those  when  the  Christians  in  Mada- 


7o  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

gascar  met  in  the  woods,  and  sung  their  h3^mns  in  whispers, 
lest  their  enemies  might  hear,  we  have  a  long  series  of  in- 
stances, all  tending  to  show  that  God  is  with  his  people  in 
the  furnace  and  supports  them  through  it.  If  we  may  not 
say  that  he  has  always  delivered  them  from  their  enemies, 
we  can  say  that  he  has  always  advanced  his  kingdom  in 
and  through  their  sufferings.  To  such  an  extent  has  this 
been  the  case  that  the  words  of  Tertullian  have  passed  into 
a  proverb  :  "  The  blood  of  the  martyrs  is  the  seed  of  the 
Church." 

You  have  sometimes  seen  that  the  death  of  a  Christian 
has,  through  his  calm,  quiet  faith  and  hopefu',  loving  words, 
brought  life  to  the  souls  of  those  who  stood  around  his  bed. 
So  the  deaths  of  the  martyrs  drew  men's  attention  to  the 
truth,  for  holding  which  they  died.  The  very  flames  which 
burned  them  unbound  their  testimony,  and  sent  it  over  the 
world,  to  tell  of  Jesus  and  his  grace. 

What  the  historian  of  the  Scottish  Reformation  says 
about  its  protomartyr,' Patrick  Hamilton  —  namely,  that 
"the  smoke  of  his  burning  infected  all  on  whom  it  blew" 
— is  true  of  every  martyrdom  in  some  measure.  It  is  thus 
bad  policy  in  a  civil  government  to  persecute  for  religious 
opinions.  It  is  what  Talleyrand  said  is  worse  than  a  crime 
— a  blunder.  For  if  the  victim  believe  error,  then  persecu- 
tion gives  him  and  his  cause  an  importance  which  would 
not  otherwise  belong  to  it ;  and  if  he  believe  the  truth,  no 
human  power  can  overthrow  that,  for  it  is  immortal  with  the 
immortality  of  God. 

But,  in  the  fourth  place,  we  see  here  that,  in  the  matter  of 
religious  intolerance,  as  well  as  in  some  other  things,  the 
opposite  of  wrong  is  not  always  right.  Nebuchadnezzar 
gave  up  the  attempt  to  coerce  these  three  valiant  men. 
That  was  well ;  but  he  issued  an  edict  in  reference  to  Je- 
hovali  which  had  in  it  elements  not  less  objectionable  than 
his  command  to  worship  the  image  or  his  threat  to  put  the 


The  Non-conformists  of  Babylon.  71 

disobedient  into  the  furnace  of  fire.  He  had  no  more  right 
to  cut  men  in  pieces  for  speaking  evil  of  Jehovah  than  he 
had  to  put  Shadrach  and  his  companions  into  the  flames 
for  not  worshipping  his  image.  Both  edicts  were  alike  un- 
justifiable; and,  as  the  subject  has  come  thus  incidentally 
before  us,  we  may  take  advantage  of  the  opportunity  for 
bringing  into  prominence  the  great  principles  on  which  re- 
ligious liberty  rests,  and  in  the  maintenance  of  which  it  is 
to  be  preserved. 

They  are  these  four :  first,  that  every  citizen  shall  have 
perfect  liberty  to  worship  God  according  to  his  conscience ; 
second,  that  the  State  shall  protect  every  citizen  in  the  en- 
joyment of  that  liberty  so  far  as  it  does  not  interfere  with 
the  rights  and  liberties  of  others  ;  third,  that  no  citizen  shall, 
in  civil  matters,  be  subjected  to  any  disability  on  the  ground 
of  his  religious  belief ;  fourth,  that  no  citizen  shall  have,  in 
civil  things,  a  preference  given  to  him  on  the  ground  of  his 
religious  profession  or  belief. 

It  is  in  relation  to  the  last  of  these  that  the  danger  of 
the  present  lies.  That  is  the  outermost  bastion,  which  has 
been  thrown  up  for  the  defence  of  the  great  citadel  of  free- 
dom. There  the  first  onslaught  will  be  made,  if  it  should 
ever  be  again  attacked.  There,  therefore,  let  us  be  special- 
ly on  our  guard.  Let  us  accept  nothing  for  ourselves  which 
we  are  not  willing  to  give  fully  to  others  ;  and  let  us  see  to 
it  that  others  are  not  buttressed  and  strengthened  by  the 
State  simply  and  only  on  the  ground  of  their  religious 
creed.  In  one  word,  let  us  insist  that  the  executive  of  the 
State  shall  confine  itself  to  civil  matters,  and  treat  all  relig- 
ious denominations  with  neutrality  by  letting  them  all  se- 
verely alone.  All  colors  are  alike  in  the  dark ;  and  all 
creeds  will  be  alike  to  the  State  when,  and  only  when,  no 
church  receives  a  single  penny  of  its  funds  for  any  purpose 
whatsoever,  and  no  citizen  receives  a  boon  of  any  sort  sim- 
ply and  only  for  his  religious  creed. 


V. 

PRIDE  ABASED. 

Daniel  iv. 

THE  fourth  chapter  of  the  Book  of  Daniel  consists  of 
a  decree  published  by  Nebuchadnezzar,  after  he  had 
passed  through  a  series  of  most  remarkable  experiences ; 
and  we  may,  perhaps,  have  the  clearest  idea  of  its  meaning 
and  design,  if  we  weave  into  a  consecutive  narrative  the  dif- 
ferent incidents  to  which  it  refers. 

After  this  Babylonian  monarch  had  finished  his  military 
career  by  conquering  all  his  enemies,  he  set  himself  to  im- 
jDrove  his  territory,  and  beautify  his  capital  with  all  the  re- 
sources which  he  had  accumulated.  Whatever  wealth  could 
procure,  or  skill  devise,  or  labor  accomplish,  was  obtained 
by  him  for  his  country  and  his  metropolis,  until,  at  length, 
Babylon  was  ranked  among  the  wonders  of  the  world. 
Much  had  been  done  for  that  ancient  city  by  Ninus  and 
Semiramis,  and  even  before  the  days  of  Nebuchadnezzar  it 
was  numbered  among  the  grandest  places  on  the  surface  of 
the  earth  ;  yet  what  the  Rome  of  Augustus  was  to  the  Rome 
of  the  Republic,  or  what  Paris  under  the  last  Napoleon  was 
to  Paris  in  the  days  of  the  first  Revolution,  that,  only  per- 
haps on  a  larger  and  more  gorgeous  scale,  was  Babylon 
under  Nebuchadnezzar  to  Babylon  as  it  existed  before  his 
days. 

That  we  may  see  the  truth  of  this  statement,  let  us  take 
a  description  of  the  city  in  its  greatest  splendor,  and  then 
mark  how  much  of  it  is  traced  by  ancient  writers  to  the 
monarch  of  whom  we  speak. 


Pride  Abased.  73 

The  city  stood  on  the  river  Euphrates,  by  which  it  is  di- 
vided into  two  parts,  Eastern  and  Western,  and  these  were 
connected  by  a  bridge  of  wonderful  construction.  "The 
wall  was  at  least  sixty  miles  in  circumference,  and  would,  of 
course,  include  an  area  three  times  as  large  as  that  covered 
by  London  and  its  appendages.  It  was  laid  out  in  six  hun- 
dred and  twenty-five  squares,  formed  by  the  intersection  of 
twenty-five  streets  at  right  angles.  The  walls,  which  were 
of  brick,  were  at  least  seventy-five  feet  high  and  thirty-two 
broad.  A  trench  surrounded  the  city,  the  sides  of  which 
were  lined  with  brick  and  water-proof  cement."*  Now,  the 
Eastern,  or  older,  part  of  the  city  Nebuchadnezzar  repaired 
and  beautified  throughout ;  the  Western  portion  he  added 
entirely  himself ;  and  the  bridge  which  connected  the  two 
was  of  his  construction.  Besides  these,  he  surrounded  the 
entire  city  with  several  new  lines  of  fortification,  and  con- 
structed a  new  palace  adjoining  the  old  residence  of  his 
father.  In  the  grounds  of  his  palace  he  erected  those 
hanging -gardens  which  were  the  marvel  of  the  ancient 
world.  His  wife,  having  been  brought  up  in  Media,  de- 
sired something  to  remind  her  of  her  native  land  ;  and  for 
her  satisfaction  he  constructed  a  raised  terrace,  on  the 
summit  of  which  were  flowers  and  pleasure-grounds  of  the 
most  beautiful  description.  This  terrace  is  described  as 
having  been  a  square  four  hundred  feet  each  way,  and 
raised  to  an  elevation  of  seventy-five  feet  above  the  ground. 
It  was  approached  by  sloping  walks,  and  supported  by  a 
series  of  arched  galleries  increasing  in  height  from  the  base 
to  the  summit.  In  these  galleries  were  various  chambers, 
one  of  which  contained  the  engines  by  which  water  was 
raised  from  the  river  to  the  surface  of  the  mound. 

Nor  are  we  dependent  on  the  testimony  of  ancient  histo- 

*  Eadie's  "  C}-clopaeclia,"  article  Babylon. 
4 


74  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

rians  alone  for  these  particulars.  The  Standard  Inscription, 
referred  to  in  my  last  discourse,  relates  at  length  the  con- 
struction of  the  v.'hole  series  of  works,  and  appears  to  have 
been  the  authority  from  which  Berosus  drew ;  while  the 
ruins  of  Babylon  at  this  date,  covering  as  they  do  an  area 
of  two  hundred  square  miles,  confirm  this  in  the  most  de- 
cisive manner,  for  nine-tenths  of  the  bricks  found  there  are 
stamped  with  Nebuchadnezzar's  name. 

But  his  buildings  were  not  confined  to  the  city  of  Baby- 
lon. "  I  have  examined,"  says  Sir  Henry  Rawlinson,  "  the 
bricks  in  situ  belonging,  perhaps,  to  a  hundred  different  towns 
and  cities  in  the  neighborhood  of  Bagdad,  and  I  never  found 
any  other  legend  than  that  of  Nebuchadnezzar,  son  of  Na- 
bopolassar,  King  of  Babylon."  Hence  we  may  believe  that 
throughout  his  empire  he  built  or  rebuilt  cities,  repaired 
temples,  constructed  quays,  reservoirs,  canals,  and  aqueducts 
on  a  scale  of  grandeur  and  magnificence  surpassing  every- 
thing of  the  kind  recorded  in  history,  unless  it  be  the  pub- 
lic works  of  one  or  two  of  the  greatest  Egyptian  monarchs. 
There  is  also  reason  to  conclude  that  an  extensive  system 
of  irrigation  Was  devised  by  him,  and  that  the  Babylonians 
were  indebted  to  him  for  the  vast  net-work  of  canals  which 
covered  the  whole  alluvial  tract  between  the  two  rivers  (Ti- 
gris and  Euphrates),  and  extended  on  the  right  bank  of  the 
Euphrates  to  the  extreme  verge  of  the  stony  desert.* 

After  all  this  building  activity,  and  with  a  large  amount 
of  self-satisfaction  at  the  completion  of  so  many  of  his 
plans,  the  king  was  at  rest  in  his  palace,  when  a  dream 
•came  to  him  in  the  visions  of  the  night  which  made  him 
sore  afraid.  As  on  the  former  occasion,  he  sent  for  the 
Chaldeans,  and  asked  them  to  interpret  it  after  he  had  told 
them  what  it  was ;  for  this  time  the  thing  had  so  deeply 

*  Smith's  "Dictionary,"  article  Nebuchadnezzar. 


'  Pride  Abased.  75 

burned  itself  upon  his  brain  that  he  had  not  been  able  to 
forget  it,  and  did  not,  therefore,  need  that  it  should  be  re- 
produced. 

The  vision  was  on  this  wise.  He  saw  in  the  midst  of 
the  earth  a  tree,  which  grew  so  great  that  its  height  reached 
unto  the  heavens,  and  it  was  a  conspicuous  object  even  to 
the  uttermost  bound  of  the  horizon.  Its  leaves  were  fair, 
and  its  fruit  abundant.  It  gave  shelter  to  the  beasts  of  the 
field  which  gathered  underneath  its  spreading  boughs,  and 
to  the  fowls  of  the  air  which  built  their  nests  in  its  leafy- 
branches,  and  it  afforded  food  to  all  who  dw^elt  in  its  vicini- 
ty. At  length,  however,  an  angelic  being  made  his  appear- 
ance, and  gave  commandment  that  it  should  be  hewn  down, 
yet  not  so  that  it  should  be  entirely  destroyed,  for  its  root 
was  to  be  left  in  the  earth.  But  at  this  stage  of  his  injunc- 
tion, the  angel's  language  ceases  to  be  applicable  to  a  tree, 
and  becomes  such  as  could  be  fulfilled  only  in  the  case  of 
a  man  :  "  Let  his  heart  be  changed  from  a  man's,  and  let  a 
beast's  heart  be  given  unto  him  ;  and  let  seven  times  pass 
over  him.  This  matter  is  by  the  decree  of  the  watchers, 
and  the  demand  by  the  word  of  the  holy  ones ;  to  the  intent 
that  the  living  may  know  that  the  Most  High  loileth  in  the 
kingdom  of  men,  and  giveth  it  to  whomsoever  he  will,  and 
setteth  up  over  it  the  basest  of  men." 

There  is  in  all  this  much  of  that  incongruity  which  is 
characteristic  of  dreams  ;  yet  the  turn  of  the  angel's  words, 
whereby  he  indicated  that  the  tree  represented  a  man,  and 
the  moral  purpose  of  the  whole,  as  expressed  in  his  conclud- 
ing phrases,  could  not  but  impress  the  heart  of  Nebuchad- 
nezzar ;  and  even  before  he  had  received  the  interpretation 
from  Daniel,  his  conscience  must  have  whispered  that  the 
tree  was  designed  to  represent  himself.  Just  as,  at  a  later 
day,  the  trembling  of  Belshazzar,  when  he  saw  the  handwrit- 
ing on  the  wall,  was  itself  an  interpretation,  or,  rather,  the 


76  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

consequences  of  an  interpretation,  already  made  by  himself 
of  the  mysterious  characters,  so  the  anxiety  of  Nebuchad- 
nezzar here  was  the  result  of  an  application  to  himself  of 
this  singular  vision.  But  his  conscience  gave  him  only  a 
vague  presentiment  of  its  real  meaning.  So,  wishing  to  dis- 
cover the  particular  significance  of  each  part  of  his  dream, 
and  regarding  it  as  a  revelation  from  Heaven,  he  sent  for 
the  Chaldeans  to  give  him  the  explanation.  One  wonders 
that,  after  his  former  experience,  he  did  not  send  for  Daniel 
at  once.  But  many  years  had  elapsed  since  the  date  of  the 
interpretation  of  the  former  dream,  and  the  vivid  impression 
made  upon  his  mind  at  that  time  of  the  pre-eminence  of 
Daniel's  God  had  been  effaced ;  so  he  resorted  to  the  ac- 
credited source  of  light  in  his  empire.  But  the  Chaldeans 
were  again  at  fault.  They  could  not  explain  this  dream,  any 
more  than  they  could  reproduce  the  former. 

At  the  last,  however,  X)aniel,  apparently  without  having 
been  sent  for,  presented  himself  to  the  monarch,  and  after 
having  heard  the  dream,  he  was  so  grieved  at  its  meaning 
that  he  sat  speechless  for  an  hour,  and  only  regained  the 
power  of  utterance  to  say  with  the  sincerest  emotion,  "  My 
lord,  the  dream  be  to  them  that  hate  thee,  and  the  interpre- 
tation thereof  to  thine  enemies."  He  then,  after  recapitu- 
lating the  various  objects  in  the  vision,  gave  the  interpreta- 
tion thus  :  "  They  shall  drive  thee  from  men,  and  thy  dwell- 
ing shall  be  with  the  beasts  of  the  field,  and  they  shall  make 
thee  to  eat  grass  as  oxen,  and  they  shall  wet  thee  with  the 
dew  of  heaven,  and  seven  times  shall  pass  over  thee,  till 
thou  know  that  the  Most  High  ruleth  in  the  kingdom  of 
men,  and  giveth  it  to  whomsoever  he  will."  Then,  passing 
from  the  interpreter  to  the  counsellor,  the  faithful  prophet, 
valuing  the  welfare  of  the  monarch  more  than  his  good 
opinion  for  the  moment,  and  fearing  degradation  for  him 
more  than  the  loss  of  favor  for  himself,  added  these  words, 


Pride  Abased.  77 

which  are  not  more  remarkable  for  the  courtesy  of  their 
tone  than  for  the  sternness  of  their  fidelit}^ :  "  Wherefore,  O 
king,  let  my  counsel  be  acceptable  unto  thee,  and  break  off 
thy  sins  by  righteousness,  and  thine  iniquities  by  showing 
mercy  to  the  poor,  if  it  may  be  a  lengthening  of  thy  tran- 
quillity." 

We  do  not  know  how  this  wise  advice  was  received.  Per- 
haps the  monarch  was  too  thankful  to  obtain  an  explana- 
tion of  his  dream  to  quarrel  with  the  moral  precepts  of  him 
who  had  interpreted  it,  and  so,  while  inwardly  chafing  at  the 
rebuke  which  w^as  implied  in  Daniel's  words,  he  may  have 
smothered  his  indignation  for  the  time,  and  allowed  his  ser- 
vant to  go  as  unreproved  as  he  was  unrewarded.  But,  how- 
ever he  felt  at  the  moment,  we  know  that  no  improvement 
characterized  either  his  disposition  or  his  conduct.  For  a 
full  year  things  went  on  as  before,  and  perhaps  the  king 
may  have  been  congratulating  himself  that  for  once  Dan- 
iel was  wrong  in  his  interpretation,  or  that  the  dream  had 
no  special  significance.  But  though  God's  retribution  may 
come  slowly,  it  comes  surely,  and  ere  long  all  that  Daniel 
had  described  was  realized. 

Looking  forth  from  his  palace  over  the  city  which  he  had 
done  so  much  to  beautify,  extend,  and  fortify,  he  was  in  the 
very  act  of  giving  utterance  to  the  pride  with  which  his 
heart  was  swelling,  when  a  great  calamity  came  upon  him. 
Scarcely  had  he  said,  "  Is  not  this  great  Babylon,  that  I 
have  built  for  the  house  of  the  kingdom  by  the  might  of 
my  power,  and  for  the  honor  of  my  majesty  ?"  when  a  voice 
from  heaven  fell  upon  his  ear  repeating  Daniel's  prophecy. 
In  the  terror  produced  by  this  divine  communication,  his 
reason  was  dethroned,  and  he  went  forth  a  wretched  mani- 
ac, leaving  his  kingdom  to  be  cared  for  by  his  son,  and  liv- 
ing for  seven  times — that  is,  as  some  think,  for  seven  years, 
after  the  manner  of  the  beasts  of  the  field. 


78  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

Much  has  been  written  by  commentators  in  all  ages  on 
this  illness  of  Nebuchadnezzar;  but  it  is  generally  agreed, 
from  the  use  of  these  words  in  reference  to  his  recovery, 
"  Mine  understanding  returned  unto  me,"  that  he  became 
insane ;  and,  from  the  description  of  the  condition  to  which 
he  was  reduced,  physiologists  have  concluded  that  he  was 
afflicted  with  that  species  of  madness  in  which  "  the  sufferer, 
while  retaining  his  consciousness  in  other  respects,  imagines 
himself  to  be  changed  into  some  animal,  and  acts  up  to  a 
certain  point  in  conformity  with  that  persuasion.  Those 
who  imagined  themselves  changed  into  wolves  howled  like 
wolves,  and  (falsely,  as  there  is  reason  to  believe)  accused 
themselves  of  bloodshed.  Others  imitated  the  cries  of 
dogs."*  The  disease  goes  by  the  generic  name  of  zoa7i- 
thropia. 

In  the  case  before  us,  Nebuchadnezzar  fancied  himself 
an  ox,  and  acted  in  conformity  with  that  imagination,  eating 
grass  among  the  cattle,  and  remaining  exposed  in  the  fields 
to  all  weathers,  until  his  hair  became  like  the  feathers  of  an 
eagle  in  length  and  matted  consistency,  and  his  nails  like 
the  claws  of  a  bird.  All  this  while,  however,  there  must 
have  been  within  him  somewhat  of  a  consciousness  of  his 


*  Pusey's  "  Lectures  on  Daniel  the  Prophet,"  pp.  42S,  429.  In  the 
Bohn's  Library  edition  of"  Izaak  Walton's  Complete  Angler,"  \Yhich  I 
was  consulting  lately  for  quite  another  purpose,  I  find  the  following  note 
on  p.  166,  by  the  American  editor:  "Among  the  many  strange  delu- 
sions which  have  afflicted  men,  that  of  supposing  themselves  trans- 
formed into  brutes  of  various  kinds,  such  as  horses,  dogs,  wolves,  or 
others,  has  been  so  frequent  as  to  give  names  to  several  forms  of  mania, 
classed  by  Sauvages  in  his  '  Nosology '  under  the  general  head  of  Zoan- 
thropy.  Raulin  affirms  that  a  whole  cloister  of  nuns  imagined  them- 
selves to  be  cats,  mewing,  etc.,  as  such.  A  few  years  since  there  might 
have  been  seen,  in  the  hospital  of  Bellevue,  New  Yorlc,  a  man  who  fan- 
cied himself  to  be  a  hog,  and  had  attained  singular  skill  in  grunting  as 
he  rolled  among  the  straw  in  his  cell." 


Pride  Abased.  79 

real  identity,  which  must,  one  would  think,  have  intensified 
to  him  the  misery  of  his  malady. 

Dr.  Pusey,  in  his  "  Lectures  on  Daniel,"  quotes  the  follow- 
ing sentences  on  this  point  from  Dr.  Browne,  the  Commis- 
sioner of  the  Board  of  Lunacy  for  Scotland,  who  speaks 
from  an  experience  of  thirty  years  :  "  My  opinion  is,"  says 
he,  "  that  of  all  mental  powers  or  conditions  the  idea  of  per- 
sonal identity  is  but  rarely  enfeebled,  and  that  it  is  never 
extinguished.  The  ego  (self)  and  non  ego  (not  self)  may  be 
confused.  The  ego,  however,  continues  to  preserve  the  per- 
sonality. All  the  angels,  devils,  dukes,  lords,  kings,  gods, 
many  that  I  have  had  under  my  care,  remained  what  they 
were  before  they  became  angels,  dukes,  etc.,  in  a  sense,  and 
even  nominally.  I  have  seen  a  man  declaring  himself  the 
Saviour,  or  St.  Paul,  yet  sign  his  own  name  James  Thomson, 
and  attend  worship  as  regularly  as  if  the  notion  of  Divinity 
had  never  entered  into  his  head.  I  think  it  probable,  there- 
fore, because  consistent  with  experience  in  similar  forms 
of  mental  affection,  that  Nebuchadnezzar  retained  a  perfect 
consciousness  that  he  was  Nebuchadnezzar  during  the  whole 
course  of  his  degradation."* 

Some  have  supposed  that  the  band  of  iron  and  brass 
which  was  to  be  put  round  the  stump  of  the  tree  symbolizes 
the  mode  of  restraint  to  which  the  maniac  monarch  was  sub- 
jected, inasmuch  as  he  was  probably  bound  in  chains,  either 
to  keep  him  from  inflicting  injury  upon  himself,  or  to  pre- 
vent him  from  doing  harm  to  others.  But  whether  he  was 
bound  thus,  or  whether  he  was  permitted  to  wander  at  his 
will  among  the  cattle  of  the  fields,  we  must  equally  see  how 
much  cause  for  gratitude  we  in  these  days  have  in  the  fact 
that,  owing  to  the  advance  of  medical  science,  insanity  is 
recognized  as  a  disease,  just  as  much  and  as  really  as  a 

*  Pusey's  "  Lectures  on  Daniel  the  Prophet,"  pp.  430,  435. 


8o  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

fever  is,  and  that  those  who  are  afflicted  with  it  are  in  the 
main  treated  with  gentleness,  and  in  such  a  way  as  shall 
best  conduce  to  the  restoration  of  health  to  the  brain.  It 
is  always  a  terrible  affliction ;  it  is  indeed,  in  my  view,  the 
most  painful  form  of  disease  to  which  our  complex  human- 
ity is  liable  ;  and  when  one  sees  a  man  endowed  with  such 
strength  of  mind  as  Nebuchadnezzar  possessed,  yet  reduced 
to  such  a  pitiable  condition,  one  is  led  to  thank  God  as  he 
never  did  before  for  the  continuance  of  his  reason,  and  to 
pray  that  he  may  be  preserved  from  similar  distress.  For 
if  Dr.  Browne's  idea  that  the  king  kept  all  through  the  con- 
sciousness that  he  was  Nebuchadnezzar  be  correct,  his  ago- 
ny must  at  times  have  been  most  acute ;  and  if  this  were 
the  time  or  place,  or  if  it  were  needed  to  bring  out  more 
forcibly  the  point  on  which  I  am  now  insisting,  we  might 
quote  from  the  recorded  experience  of  others  in  similar  cir- 
cumstances, how  bitterly  they  felt  the  humiliation  of  their 
condition.  What  an  anguish  it  was  now  and  then  to  Rob- 
ert Hall,  with  that  noble  intellect  of  his,  to  awake  to  the 
fact,  as  he  sometimes  did  after  a  paroxysm  of  madness,  that 
he  had  become  so  irrational !  And  similar  shocks  of  agony 
must  have  gone  through  the  heart  of  Nebuchadnezzar  dur- 
ing his  time  of  affliction. 

But,  after  the  seven  times  had  gone,  the  king  lifted  up  his 
eyes  unto  heaven,  and  his  understanding  came  to  him  again, 
but  came  in  a  form  more  clear  than  before,  for  now  he  per- 
ceived that  his  greatness  was  not  all  his  own.  He  discov- 
ered that  he  had  nothing  which  he  had  not  received,  and  he 
was  disposed  to  give  to  the  Most  High  God  the  glory  of 
all  that  he  was,  and  all  that  he  had  done.  With  this  rec- 
ognition of  the  King  eternal,  immortal,  and  invisible,  the 
only  wise  God,  his  reason  came  to  him,  and  the  glory  of 
his  kingdom  and  the  honor  and  the  brightness  of  his 
court  were  restored,  and  his   "  counsellors  and  his  lords 


Pride  Abased.  8i 

sought  again  to  him,  and  he  was  established  in  his  king- 
dom." 

It  has  been  thought  a  strange  thing  that  no  record  of 
this  mental  eclipse  of  Nebuchadnezzar  should  be  found  in 
the  ancient  historians  of  his  times.  But  the  silence  of  these 
authors  may,  perhaps,  be  thus  accounted  for.  Berosus,  be- 
ing himself  a  native  of  Babylon,  and  having  what  one  may 
call  a  pardonable  pride  in  the  greatness  of  Nebuchadnezzar, 
the  most  illustrious  monarch  of  the  empire,  may  have  been 
tempted  to  suppress  this  incident,  lest  it  should  seem  to 
mar  the  splendor  of  his  renown ;  and  as  for  Herodotus,  he 
did  not  visit  Babylon  till  one  hundred  years  after  the  death 
of  Nebuchadnezzar,  and  it  may  well  be  doubted  if  he  ever 
heard  anything  about  that  monarch's  madness.  But  recent- 
ly a  portion  of  the  great  Standard  Inscription,  among  the 
Cuneiform  memorials  of  the  empire,  has  been  brought  to 
light  by  Rawlinson,  which,  to  say  the  least  of  it,  seems  to 
contain  an  allusion  to  the  singular  hiatus  in  his  reign  which 
his  lunacy  produced.  I  quote  the  passage  as  it  is  given  in 
Smith's  "  Dictionary  of  the  Bible  :" 

"  After  describing  the  construction  of  the  most  important 
of  his  great  works,  he  appears  to  say,  '  For  four  years  the 
seat  of  my  kingdom  did  not  rejoice  my  heart.  In  all  my 
dominions  I  did  not  build  a  high  place  of  power ;  the  pre- 
cious treasures  of  my  kingdom  I  did  not  lay  up.  In  Baby- 
lon, buildings  for  myself  and  for  the  honor  of  my  kingdom 
I  did  not  lay  out.  In  the  worship  of  Merodach,  my  lord, 
the  joy  of  my  heart,  in  Babylon,  the  seat  of  his  sovereignty, 
and  the  seat  of  my  empire,  I  did  not  sing  his  praises ;  I  did 
not  furnish  his  altars  with  victims,  nor  did  I  clear  out  the 
canals.'  Other  negative  clauses  follow.  It  is  plain  that 
we  have  here  narrated  a  suspension,  apparently  for  four 
years,  of  all  those  works  and  occupations  on  which  the  king 
especially  prided  himself — his  temples,  palaces,  worship,  of- 

4* 


82  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

ferings,  and  works  of  irrigation ;  and  though  the  cause  of 
the  suspension  is  not  stated,  we  can  scarcely  imagine  any- 
thing that  would  account  for  it  but  some  such  extraordinary 
malady  as  that  recorded  in  Daniel."*  To  say  the  least  of 
it,  we  have  here  a  very  singular  coincidence,  and  we  may 
fairly  enough  adduce  this  strange  passage  from  the  Stand- 
ard Inscription  as  counterbalancing  the  silence  of  the  an- 
cient historians  upon  the  subject. 

But  now  the  question  presents  itself,  What  did  Nebu- 
chadnezzar design  by  the  publication  of  the  decree  in 
which  these  facts  are  here  preserved .''  Did  he  mean  to 
represent  himself  as  having  become  an  adherent  of  the 
Jewish  faith  ?  Did  he  put  this  forth  as  an  account  of  what 
we,  in  modern  phrase,  would  call  his  "  conversion  ?"  Was 
he,  after  the  publication  of  this  decree,  or,  rather,  after  the 
occurrences  on  which  it  is  founded,  a  truly  regenerate  man, 
a  real  and  devout  believer  in  Jehovah  as  the  only  living  and 
true  God  ? 

These  questions  are  much  more  easily  asked  than  an- 
swered. On  the  one  hand,  there  is  much  in  the  document 
which  looks  as  if  the  king  had  become  a  believer  in  the 
unity  and  supremacy  of  Jehovah,  as  when  he  speaks  of  him 
as  the  Most  High,  of  his  dominion  as  everlasting,  and  of 
his  authority  as  absolute.  On  the  other  hand,  there  are  de- 
tached expressions  which  seem  to  indicate  that  he  was  still 
a  worshipper  of  the  inferior  deities  of  polytheism.  Thus,  he 
names  Daniel  "  Belteshazzar,"  adding  the  clause,  "  accord- 
ing to  the  name  of  my  God,"  and  says  of  him,  "  in  whom  is 
the  spirit  of  the  holy  gods."  It  would  appear,  therefore, 
that,  while  acknowledging  the  supremacy  of  Jehovah  as  the 
Most  High,  he  still  clung  to  the  worship  and  service  of  in- 
ferior divinities.     Hence,  though  there  w-as  what  might  be 

*  Smith's  "  Dictionary,"  vol.  ii.,  p.  4S3. 


Pride  Abased.  83 

called  a  conversion  in  him,  it  was  still  an  imperfect  conver- 
sion. He  did  not  allow  his  belief  in  a  supreme  God  to  in- 
terfere with  the  acknowledgment  of  inferior  gods.  Just  as 
Cyrus,  in  his  edict,  owned  the  supremacy  of  the  God  of  Is- 
rael, and  Artaxerxes  spoke  of  him  as  the  God  of  heaven, 
while  neither  of  them,  so  far  as  we  know,  abjured  the  poly- 
theism in  which  they  had  both  been  educated ;  so  it  is  not 
improbable  that  Nebuchadnezzar  was  brought,  by  the  influ- 
ence of  his  affliction,  to  recognize  the  supreme  power  of  Je- 
hovah while  yet  he  retained  his  worship  of  other  deities. 
This  reading  of  his  character,  too,  is  most  in  harmony  with 
his  intense  devotion  to  the  idol  Bel-Merodach,  which,  as  we 
saw  in  our  former  lecture,  comes  out  in  the  great  Cuneiform 
inscription  to  which  I  have  so  frequently  alluded. 

But  it  must  also  be  admitted  that  there  is  much  in  the 
document  before  us  to  incline  us  to  believe  that  he  became 
a  really  renewed  man.  Hence  we  find  the  commentator 
Scott  saying,  with  his  usual  caution,  "  The  beginning  and 
conclusion  of  this  chapter  lead  us  at  least  to  hope  with  pre- 
vailing confidence  that  he  was  at  last  made  a  monument  of 
the  power  of  divine  grace  and  the  exceeding  riches  of  di- 
vine mercy ;"  and  Matthew  Henry  thus  similarly  concludes 
his  interesting  comment  on  this  chapter :  "  Whether  he  con- 
tinued in  the  same  good  mind  that  here  he  seems  to  have 
been  in  we  are  not  told,  nor  doth  anything  appear  to  the 
contrary  but  that  he  did ;  and  if  so  great  a  blasphemer  and 
persecutor  did  find  mercy,  he  was  not  the  last.  And  if  our 
charity  reach  so  far  as  to  hope  that  he  did,  we  must  admire 
free  grace,  by  which  he  lost  his  wits  for  a  while  that  he  might 
save  his  soul  forever." 

I  undertake  not  to  decide  where  so  much  uncertainty  is 
felt  by  every  candid  reader.  Long  since  the  king  has  gone 
to  his  account,  and  we  may  be  sure  that  the  Judge  of  all  the 
earth  will  do  right  regarding  him.     Hence,  without  dwelling 


84  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

further  on  a  point  which  we  cannot  settle,  let  us  see  what 
lessons  we  may  glean  for  ourselves  from  this  deeply  inter- 
esting record. 

And,  first,  we  have  here  a  solemn  and  instructive  warning 
against  pride  and  vainglory.  With  all  his  ability,  Nebuchad- 
nezzar had  nothing  which  he  had  not  received  from  God. 
His  intellectual  greatness,  his  militaiy  success,  his  archi- 
tectural triumphs,  all  were  gifts  to  him  from  Jehovah  ;  and 
if  he  had  humbly  and  cheerfully  acknowledged  this,  and 
given  God  the  glory,  he  would  have  been  yet  greater  in  his 
piety  and  humility  than  he  was  in  all  his  other  excellencies 
put  together.  What  a  difference  between  him  and  Daniel 
in  this  respect !  When  the  young  captiA'e  had  reproduced 
and  interpreted  the  vision  of  the  composite  image,  and  was 
afterward  complimented  for  it  by  the  king,  he  was  careful 
first  to  say,  "  As  for  me,  this  secret  is  not  revealed  to  me  for 
any  wisdom  that  I  have  more  than  any  living,  but  for  their 
sakes  that  shall  make  known  the  interpretation  to  the  king, 
and  that  thou  mightest  know  the  thoughts  of  thy  heart." 

How  much  more  attractive  is  the  example  of  the  prophet 
than  that  of  the  monarch  !  In  which  of  them,  brethren,  do 
we  see  ourselves  ?  For  let  us  not  imagine  that  such  pride 
as  Nebuchadnezzar  evinced  is  manifested  by  kings  and 
earthly  grandees  alone.  It  may  be  as  really  existent  in  the 
heart  of  some  one  here  to-night  as  it  was  in  that  of  the  Bab- 
ylonian emperor.  Whoever  plumes  himself  upon  what  he 
has  done  in  the  world,  as  if  he  were  the  author  of  it  all,  and 
not  simply  the  instrument  in  the  hand  of  God,  is  as  really 
and  truly  proud  and  haughty  as  was  Nebuchadnezzar  here. 
The  merchant,  who  speaks  of  his  business  as  the  sole  result 
of  his  ability,  and  calls  himself,  with  supreme  satisfaction, 
"  the  architect  of  his  own  fortunes  ;"  the  author,  who  thinks 
of  his  book  as  the  creation  of  his  own  genius  ;  the  states- 
man, who  looks  upon  his  position  as  entirely  self-made  ;  the 


Pride  Abased.  85 

artisan,  who  prides  himself  upon  his  foremanship  ;  and  the 
millionnaire,  who,  looking  upon  his  glittering  heaps,  congrat- 
ulates himself  as  the  sole  author  of  his  gains — all  alike  are 
guilty  of  Nebuchadnezzar's  sin  ;  for  they  have  shut  God  out 
of  their  hearts,  and  they  have  not  given  him  the  acknowl- 
edgment and  the  honor  to  which  he  is  entitled. 

Let  us  seek,  therefore,  each  to  be  clothed  with  humility, 
and,  wherever  we  are  and  whatever  we  have,  let  us  acknowl- 
edge God.  "  Every  good  gift  and  every  perfect  gift  cometh 
down  "  from  him,  and  to  him  we  should  give  all  the  honor. 
In  heaven  they  cast  their  crowns  before  the  throne,  imply- 
ing that  only  by  the  favor  of  him  who  sits  thereon  have  they 
crowns  at  all ;  and  it  should  be  the  same  on  earth.  The 
prizes  we  win  in  the  race  of  life  should  be  won  by  us  that 
we  may  put  them  into  Jehovah's  hand.  This  would  sancti- 
fy the  race  itself,  and  this  would  take  away  the  danger  of 
success.  The  full  cup  is  difficult  to  carry ;  let  us,  therefore, 
pour  it  out  before  the  Lord.  The  lofty  height  makes  one 
dizzy  as  he  looks  down  and  begins  to  think  that  he  has  by 
his  own  power  toiled  up  the  steep ;  but  when,  looking  up,  he 
sees  how  far  he  is  still  beneath  God,  and  cries  for  the  con- 
tinuance of  his  holding  and  helping  hand,  he  is  steadied 
again,  and  renews  his  ascent.  Let  us,  therefore,  guard 
against  pride,  and  learn  of  him  who  said,  "  I  am  lowly." 

We  have  here  a  sad  illustration  of  the  proverb  that "  pride 
goeth  before  a  fall."  Sooner  or  later,  the  spirit  which  I  have 
been  now  exposing  will  bring  punishment  upon  him  who 
cherishes  it,  and  the  punishment  will  be  of  such  a  nature  as 
to  make  the  sinner  see  and  know  the  heinousness  of  his  sin. 

You  cannot  read  this  chapter  without  remembering  that 
other  record  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  :  "  And  upon  a  set 
day  Herod,  arrayed  in  royal  apparel,  sat  upon  his  throne, 
and  made  an  oration  unto  them.  And  the  people  gave  a 
shout,  saying,  It  is  the  voice  of  a  god,  and  not  of  a  man. 


86  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

And  immediately  the  angel  of  the  Lord  smote  him,  because 
he  gave  not  God  the  glory :  and  he  was  eaten  of  wonns,  and 
gave  up  the  ghost."*  Which  of  us,  also,  has  not  recalled  to 
his  memory  the  parable  of  the  rich  fool,  to  whom,  while  he 
was  in  the  act  of  congratulating  himself  on  his  prosperity, 
and  planning  barns  and  buildings  new,  it  was  said,  "  Thou 
fool,  this  night  thy  soul  shall  be  required  of  thee  ?"t  Ah,  it  is 
a  fearful  thing  to  make  a  god  of  one's  self.  Hath  not  Jeho- 
vah's prophet  said,  "  The  idols  he  shall  utterly  abolish  ;"  and 
if  that  idol  in  our  case  be  self,  think  you  self  will  not  by  him 
be  degraded  and  destroyed  ?  But  not  without  warning  do 
his  strokes  fall.  Many  years  were  given  to  the  antediluvi- 
ans before  the  flood  came  and  submerged  them,  and  twelve 
months  of  grace  were  given  to  Nebuchadnezzar  here  before 
the  blow  was  struck  which  made  his  reason  reel.  So  yet 
Jehovah  warns  those  who  are  in  the  path  of  danger ;  and 
who  can  tell  but  the  discourse  of  this  evening  may  be  by 
him  designed  to  be  to  some  proud  and  haughty  sinner  here, 
what  this  dream  and  its  interpretation  were  to  Nebuchad- 
nezzar ?  Oh !  let  the  proud  take  warning,  and  "  humble 
themselves  under  the  mighty  hand  of  God,  that  he  may  ex- 
alt them  in  due  time." 

In  the  third  place,  we. have  here  a  beautiful  illustration  of 
fidelity  in  the  proclamation  of  God's  truth.  It  cost  Daniel 
a  great  deal  to  give  this  interpretation  of  the  dream  to  the 
monarch.  The  king  had  been  very  kind  to  him,  and  he 
would  rather  have  done  a  great  many  other  things  than 
have  unfolded  to  him  all  that  was  declared  by  the  vision. 
But  there  was  no  help  for  it !  Necessity  was  laid  upon  him, 
and  faithfulness  alike  to  Jehovah  and  to  Nebuchadnezzar 
required  that  he  should  speak  the  whole  truth.  Hence  he 
gave  the  interpretation  with  the  utmost  exactness  ;  and  then, 

*  Acts  xii.,  2i'-23.  t  Luke  xii.,  15-21. 


Pride  Abased.  87 

in  the  most  courteous  manner,  he  advised  the  king  to  re- 
pentance. Now,  only  they  who  have  had  to  say  unwelcome 
truths  to  those  who  are  above  them  in  station,  or  to  whom  in 
worldly  matters  they  have  been  much  beholden,  can  estimate 
the  difficulty  and  delicacy  of  the  position  which  the  prophet 
occupied.  Many  in  his  place  would  have  evaded  the  duty 
altogether,  and  held  their  peace.  Many  others,  perhaps, 
under  the  plea  of  being  faithful,  would  have  become  imper- 
tinent, and  used  language  both  uncourtly  and  unwarranted. 
But  what  could  be  finer  than  Daniel's  bearing  all  through  ? 
With  manifest  sorrow  the  interpretation  is  given,  and  after 
that  is  finished  there  is  this  brief  and  beautiful  application 
made  :  "  Wherefore,  O  king,  let  my  counsel  be  acceptable 
unto  thee,  and  break  off  thy  sins  by  righteousness,  and  thine 
iniquities  by  showing  mercy  to  the  poor,  if  it  may  be  a 
lengthening  of  thy  tranquillity."  Wliat  an  example  have  we 
here  to  every  messenger  of  God !  Equally  removed  from 
time-serving  timidity  and  impertinent  rudeness,  he  sets  the 
truth  in  loving  faithfulness  before  his  master,  and  behold 
his  reward  !  Perhaps  the  king  was  annoyed  in  the  first  in- 
stance, but  he  lived  to  value  the  advice,  and  here  five  years 
— yea,  perhaps  eight  years — after  it  had  been  given,  it  is  re- 
produced by  the  monarch  himself,  and  inserted  in  his  de- 
cree to  show  how  much  he  came  at  length  to  value  the 
friendship  of  his  servant.  May  God  help  every  preacher  of 
his  truth  to  be  as  faithful  and  as  courteous  as  was  Daniel 
here ! 

In  the  fourth  place,  we  have  surely  a  loud  call  addressed 
to  us  in  this  chapter  to  thank  God  for  the  continuance  of 
our  reason.  How  seldom  we  think  of  this  !  Yet  how  im- 
portant it  is,  after  all !  What  a  blessing  it  is  to  have  a 
sound  mind  in  a  sound  body !  Let  us  praise  God  for  its 
possession,  and  let  us  use  means  for  its  preservation.  I  do 
not  think  that  we  in  this  age  are  pearly  so  careful  in  this 


88  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

respect  as  we  ought  to  be.  We  are  living  at  high-pressure. 
We  are  going,  intellectually,  at  express  speed ;  and  so,  not 
unfrequently,  our  finest  minds  are  ruined,  and  our  most  use- 
ful men  rendered  mentally  incapable  of  serving  either  their 
country  or  their  age.  Others  there  are  who  wilfully  court 
insanity,  and  by  excesses  of  sensuality  and  intemperance 
sow  the  seeds  of  disease  in  the  brain  whereby,  at  length, 
their  intellects  are  clouded  and  their  end  is  darkened.  Let 
us  avoid  all  this.  Let  us  show  our  gratitude  to  God  for  our 
reason,  not  only  by  the  ascription  of  praise  to  him  for  its 
possession,  but  also  by  using  it  in  his  service,  and  by  doing 
our  best  to  preserve  it  for  his  glory. 

In  the  fifth  place,  we  are  here  reminded  that  the  Most 
High  ruleth  in  the  kingdoms  of  men.  God  is  the  King  of 
kings ;  and  however  men  may  plan  and  scheme,  however 
they  may  make  war  and  peace,  whatsoever  laws  they  may 
proclaim  or  treaties  they  may  sign,  "  he  doeth  according  to 
his  will  among  the  armies  of  heaven  and  among  the  inhab- 
itants of  the  earth."  How  this  can  be,  while  yet  men  are 
free  agents,  uncoerced  in  any  way,  and  following  only  the 
inclinations  of  their  own  hearts,  we  cannot  tell ;  but  so  it  is. 
"There  are  many  devices  in  a  man's  heart;  nevertheless 
the  counsel  of  the  Lord,  that  shall  stand."  Herod  schemes, 
and  Pilate  trims,  according  to  the  nature  of  each ;  yet  the 
result  is  the  doing  of  what  God's  "  hand  and  counsel  de- 
termined before  to  be  done."  And  the  same  is  true  yet. 
Amidst  wars  and  revolutions,  amidst  the  schemings  of  em- 
perors and  chancellors,  seeking  only  their  own  aggrandize- 
ment, God  is  ruling  still ;  and  he  will  bring  out,  clear  and 
definite  at  last,  before  men's  eyes,  the  much-forgotten  truth 
that  the  allegiance  of  their  hearts  is  due  to  him.  This  is 
our  comfort  amidst  the  movements  of  our  times.  No  doubt, 
as  men  pursue  their  schemes  and  rage  in  their  ambition,  he 
may  seem  asleep,  as  Jesus  was  in  the  little  boat  upon  the 


Pride  Abased.  89 

lake  ;  but  by-and-by  he  will  awake  and  cry,  "  Peace,  be  still ;" 
and  in  the  calm  thereby  produced  the  Church  will  go  for- 
ward on  its  glorious  mission,  and  gather  in  the  saved  into 
its  bosom.  There  is  one  who  can  say,  and  who  will  say,  at 
the  proper  time,  to  Czar  and  Sultan  alike,  "  Hitherto  shall 
ye  come,  but  no  further :  and  here  shall  your  proud  waves 
be  stayed."  There  is  one  of  whom  it  is  written,  "  He  mak- 
eth  the  Ma'ath  of  man  to  praise  him,  and  restraineth  the  re- 
mainder thereof."  If  this  be  true,  then  how  safe  the  counsel 
of  the  Psalmist,  himself  a  king,  "  Be  wise  now  therefore,  O 
ye  kings :  be  instructed,  ye  judges  of  the  earth.  Serve  the 
Lord  with  fear,  and  rejoice  with  trembling.  Kiss  the  Son, 
lest  he  be  angry,  and  ye  perish  from  the  way,  when  his  wrath 
is  kindled  but  a  little.  Blessed  are  all  they  that  put  their 
trust  in  him."  And  for  ourselves,  why  should  we  wait  till  a 
judgment  teaches  us  this  truth  as  it  was  taught  to  Nebu- 
chadnezzar? Let  us  to-night  submit  ourselves  to  God 
through  Jesus  Christ,  and  yield  to  him  the  throne  of  our 
hearts  and  the  homage  of  our  lives. 


VI. 

BELSHAZZAR'S  FEAST. 
Daniel  v.,  1-3 i. 

AS  in  certain  important  particulars,  the  narrative  con- 
tained in  this  chapter  seems  to  be  at  variance  with  the 
records  of  ancient  historians,  it  will  be  necessary,  before  pro- 
ceeding to  make  any  practical  use  of  its  incidents,  that  we 
vindicate  the  accuracy  of  the  inspired  writer.  That  the  issue 
may  be  clearly  set  before  you,  let  me  give  a  brief  summary 
of  the  events  of  the  period,  collected  and  condensed  from 
the  articles  in  the  Dictionaries  of  Smith,  Fairbairn,  and  Kitto. 

Nebuchadnezzar  at  his  death  (561  B.C.)  was  succeeded  by 
his  son  Evil-Merodach,  who,  after  having  held  the  crown  for 
two  years,  was  murdered  by  his  brother-in-law,  Neriglissar, 
who  reigned  for  four  years.  After  him  came  his  son  Labo- 
rosoarchod,  a  mere  lad,  who,  nine  months  after  his  succes- 
sion to  the  throne,  fell  a  victim  to  a  conspiracy,  and  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Nabonnedus,  v.'ho  mounted  the  throne  very  short- 
ly before  the  war  broke  out  between  Cyrus  and  Croesus. 
He  chose  to  ally  himself  with  Croesus,  and  this  provoked 
the  hostility  of  Cyrus,  who  determined  to  attack  him  and 
destroy  his  power. 

Now,  according  to  the  ancient  historian  Berosus,  this  Na- 
bonnedus was  the  last  king  of  Babylon.  And  so  far  from  be- 
ing slain  in  Babylon,  we  are  told  that  he  went  out  to  meet 
Cyrus  in  battle,  and  being  defeated  by  him,  took  refuge  in 
the  stronghold  of  Borsippa,  but  soon  after  surrendered  to 
the  conqueror,  and  being  kindly  treated  by  him,  was  allowed 
to  retire  to  Carmania,  where  he  died. 


Belshazzar's  Feast.  91 

It  thus  appears  that  there  were  more  monarchs  than  one 
in  the  line  of  succession  between  Nebuchadnezzar  and  Na- 
bonnedus,  and  that  Daniel,  in  referring  to  Belshazzar,  cannot 
be  speaking  of  the  king  whom  Berosus  has  described.  Of 
course,  the  antagonists  of  Scripture  have  made  a  great  deal 
of  this,  and  in  former  days  they  were  accustomed  to  refer  to 
it  as  a  hopeless  discrepancy.  But,  in  a  marvellous  manner, 
God  has  in  these  later  times  triumphantly  vindicated  the 
accuracy  of  his  servant.  It  was  always  evident  that  Daniel 
had  not  spoken  of  Belshazzar  as  the  immediate  successor 
of  Nebuchadnezzar,  and  no  anxiety  was  felt  by  the  defend- 
ers of  Scripture  in  regard  to  that ;  but  now,  from  the  resur- 
rection of  long-buried  monuments,  the  missing  link  has  been 
discovered  by  which  we  can  easily  establish  the  accuracy 
both  of  the  sacred  writer  and  the  profane  historians. 

In  the  year  1854,  Sir  Henry  Rawlinson  deciphered  the  in- 
scriptions on  some  cylinders  found  in  the  ruins  of  Um-Gheir 
(the  ancient  Ur  of  the  Chaldees)  containing  memorials  of 
the  works  executed  by  Nabonnedus.  From  these  it  appears 
that  the  eldest  son  of  Nabonnedus  was  called  Bel-shar-ezar, 
and  admitted  by  his  father  to  a  share  in  the  government. 
In  a  communication  to  the  Athcncciim  (No.  1377),  Sir  Henry 
Rawlinson  says  :  "  We  can  now  understand  how  Belshaz- 
zar, as  joint  king  with  his  father,  may  have  been  governor  of 
Babylon  when  the  city  was  attacked  by  the  combined  forces 
of  the  Medes  and  Persians,  and  may  have  perished  in  the 
assault  which  followed,  while  Nabonnedus,  leading  a  force 
to  the  relief  of  the  place,  was  defeated,  and  obliged  to  take 
refuge  in  Borsippa,  capitulating  after  a  short  resistance,  and 
being  subsequently  assigned  an  honorable  retirement  in 
Carmania."* 

But  if  this  be  so,  you  are  ready  to  ask  how  it  comes  that 

*  Smith's  "Dictionary,"  article  Belshazzar. 


92  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

Eelshazzar  is  here  called  the  son  of  Nebuchadnezzar.  To 
which  I  answer  that  in  the  East  the  term  "  son  "  is  used  with 
great  latitude  of  meaning,  and  may  refer  to  a  nephew  or  a 
grandson,  as  well  as  a  son  proper.  Now,  Rawlinson  sup- 
poses that  Nabonnedus  married  the  daughter  of  Nebuchad- 
nezzar, an  alliance  which  would  account  for  his  conspiring 
to  get  the  throne,  and  thus  Eelshazzar  would  be  the  grand- 
son of  that  monarch. 

I  have  been  thus  particular  in  entering  upon  these  details 
that  you  may  see  how  wonderfully  God  in  his  providence, 
by  the  disentombing  of  these  old  cylinders,  is  putting  Ra- 
tionalism and  Infidelity  to  silence,  and  that  your  faith  may 
be  strengthened  in  reference  to  those  remaining  historical 
difficulties  in  the  Sacred  Scriptures  for  which,  as  yet,  no  sat- 
isfactory solution  has  been  given. 

The  only  other  point  that  needs  to  be  adverted  to  is  the 
naming  of  Darius  the  Mede  in  the  last  verse  of  the  chapter. 
All  ancient  historians  agree  that  Babylon  was  taken  by  Cy- 
rus in  person.  How  comes  it,  then,  that  here  in  the  closing 
verse  it  is  said  "  Darius  the  Mede  took  the  kingdom,  being 
about  threescore  years  old  ?"  To  this  I  reply  that  it  is  not 
said  that  Darius  was  the  general  under  whom  the  city  of 
Babylon  was  taken,  but  simply  that  he  took  the  kingdom,  a 
mode  of  speech  which  is  perfectly  consistent  with  the  fact 
that  Cyrus  took  the  city,  if  we  suppose  that  after  he  had 
taken  it,  he  left  Darius  there  as  his  delegate  and  represent- 
ative, to  exercise  the  regal  authority  while  he  went  on  with 
his  military  campaign. 

But  now  having,  as  I  trust,  satisfactorily  disposed  of  the 
historical  questions  arising  out  of  this  chapter,  let  me  pro- 
ceed to  the  consideration  of  its  contents,  having  a  special 
regard  to  their  bearing  upon  ourselves. 

The  character  of  Eelshazzar  appears  to  have  been  of  the 
most  contemptible  description.      He  was  addicted  to  the 


Belshazzar's  Feast.  93 

lowest  vices  of  self-indulgence,  and  felt  no  restraint  what- 
ever in  the  gratification  of  his  desires.  With  all  this  there 
was  combined  an  arrogance  of  the  haughtiest  kind,  which 
would  brook  no  interference  with  his  designs,  and  w^ould 
submit  to  no  expostulation  in  the  interests  of  morality. 
The  severe  lesson  read  by  Jehovah  to  his  grandfather  in 
that  mysterious  malady  with  which  he  had  been  so  long  af- 
flicted was  entirely  lost  on  him  ;  and  he  went  on  to  greater 
and  greater  excesses,  as  if  to  show  that  he  had  no  regard 
whatever  either  for  God  or  man.  At  length,  however,  the 
cup  of  his  iniquities  became  full.  In  an  hour  when  he  was 
not  aware  of  it,  the  Son  of  man  came ;  and  he  who  "  being 
often  reproved  had  hardened  his  neck,  w^as  suddenly  cut  off, 
and  that  without  remedy." 

Briefly  let  us  enumerate  the  horrors  of  that  dreadful 
night,  in  the  hope  that  his  case  may  prove  a  beacon  for  us, 
and  keep  us  from  the  rock  on  which  he  wrecked  his  king- 
dom and  lost  his  soul. 

Notice,  first,  the  intemperance  by  which  this  banquet  was 
characterized.  With  the  whole  number  of  his  lords,  and 
surrounded  by  his  wives  and  concubines,  he  held  high  festi- 
val ;  and  with  particular  emphasis,  as  if  to  mark  his  own  ex- 
cess, it  is  said  that  "he  drank  wine  before  the  thousand." 
He  had  not  heard,  perhaps — or  if  he  had,  he  only  disregard- 
ed— the  good  Hebrew  proverb,  "  It  is  not  for  kings,  O  Lem- 
uel, it  is  not  for  kings  to  drink  wine  ;  nor  for  princes  strong 
drink :  lest  they  drink,  and  forget  the  law,  and  pervert  the 
judgment  of  any  of  the  afflicted."^  He  cared  for  nothing 
then  but  the  revelry  of  the  hour.  He  kept  the  wine-cup  cir- 
cling round ;  and  we  may  be  sure  that  the  example  which 
he  set  would  be  followed  by  the  members  of  his  court,  if, 
indeed,  they  did  not  outrun  him  in  the  unholy  race.     For 

*  Proverbs  xxxi.,  4,  5. 


94  "  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

when  the  giver  of  a  feast  is  himself  a  man  of  temperate  hab- 
its, there  is  commonly  some  slight  restraint  upon  his  com- 
panions ;  but  when  he  is  a  leader  in  dissipation,  "  it  shall 
go  hard  but  they  will  better  his  instruction."  This  last,  we 
doubt  not,  was  the  case  here  ;  and  so,  as  the  maddening 
poison  did  its  wonted  work,  the  tongues  of  that  multitude 
would  be  loosed,  and  the  noise  and  confusion  would  be  as 
great  as  that  from  which  their  city  first  received  its  name. 

Alas  !  we  knovv'  only  too  well  the  concomitants  of  an  ex- 
cess like  this ;  for  such  a  scene  is  not  confined  to  a  heathen 
countr}',  with  a  godless  Belshazzar  for  its  king.  The  same 
intemperance  exists  even  now  among  ourselves.  We  have 
many  national  sins,  and  I  am  not  now  prepared  to  say  which 
of  them  is  the  greatest ;  but  it  is  indisputable  that  among 
them  all  drunkenness  holds  a  prominent  position.  I  will 
not  stop  to  compare  our  land  with  other  countries  in  regard 
to  it.  I  ask  you  only  to  walk  with  open  eyes  through  the 
streets  that  line  these  two  rivers.  Who  knows  not  the 
drunkard's  staggering  gait,  and  tattered  garments,  and  stu- 
pid, unmeaning  countenance,  compared  with  Avhich  that  of 
the  gorilla  is  intelligence  itself  ?  and  who  has  not  seen  him 
all  too  often  reeling  joast  or  rolling  in  the  gutter?  Go 
where  we  may,  too,  we  see  those  crime -manufacturing  sa- 
loons, alluring  men  to  their  destruction.  Nay,  as  if  their 
existence  were  a  blessing,  they  are  multiplied  on  every  hand, 
so  that  in  New  York  citj'  alone  we  have  no  fewer  than  eight 
thousand  of  them — enough  to  make  a  street  of  more  than 
ten  miles  in  length,  and  consuming  somewhere  about  fifty 
millions  of  dollars  annually.  In  these  circumstances,  what 
can  be  expected  but  the  increase  of  that  vice  which  is  eat- 
ing like  a  canker  into  the  heart  of  our  social  life,  and  gnaw- 
ing at  the  root  of  our  national  pre-eminence  ? 

Some  one  has  beautifully  compared  our  social  system  to 
a  pyramid,  with  its  broad  base  resting  on  the  mass  of  the 


Belshazzar's  Feast.  "  95 

people,  and  its  sides  rising  up,  through  legislators  and  gov- 
ernors, until  they  reach  the  apex  in  the  chief  magistrate  of 
the  republic,  and  has  said  that  this  is  the  most  stable  form 
of  government.  And  so,  doubtless,  it  is,  if  you  have  sound 
materials  out  of  which  to  build  your  pyramid.  But  if  the 
mass  of  the  people  who  form  its  base — and  that  is  the  most 
important  part  of  it — should  become  corrupt,  what  can  keep 
the  fabric  from  falling  to  the  dust  ?  A  corrupt  government 
and  a  foolish  legislature  may  do  much  to  mar  the  beauty  of 
a  country  and  arrest  its  progress  ;  but,  provided  the  great 
heart  of  the  people  be  sound,  the  nation  will  rise  and  re- 
cover its  old  renown.  If,  however,  the  millions  of  the  popu- 
lation should  degenerate,  if  their  manhood  should  be  eaten 
out  of  them  by  intemperance,  neither  Government  nor  Con- 
gress will  be  able  to  prevent  the  national  decay  that  must 
ensue.  As  patriots,  therefore,  not  to  speak  at  present  of  the 
higher  duty  of  our  Christian  profession,  it  becomes  us  to  do 
our  utmost  to  arrest  this  mighty  evil.  I  prescribe  not  here 
how  you  are  to  deal  wath  it.  I  only  ask  each  of  you  consci- 
entiously, and  as  in  the  sight  of  the  Redeemer's  cross,  to 
face  the  question,  "  What  ought  I  to  do  in  this  regard  ?" 
and,  if  I  may  judge  from  my  own  experience,  I  feel  con- 
vinced that  every  man  who  sets  himself  to  grapple  with  that 
question  fairly  will  determine  that,  in  present  circumstances, 
he,  at  least,  will  have  nothing  whatever  to  do  with  the  ac- 
cursed thing. 

And  oh  !  if  there  be  any  one  here  to-night  who  knows  that 
he  is  personally  addicted  to  this  vice,  let  me  implore  him 
never  again  to  taste  strong  drink.  "  Look  not  thou  on  the 
wine  when  it  is  red,  when  it  giveth  its  color  in  the  cup,  when 
it  moveth  itself  aright.  At  the  last,  it  biteth  like  a  serpent, 
and  stingeth  like  an  adder."  ''At  the  last !"  Would  you 
know  what  that  means  ?  Then  come  with  me,  and  see  the 
saddest  sight,  I  think,  I  ever  witnessed.     The  warden  was 


g6  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

leading  me  through  one  of  the  corridors  of  the  workhouse 
on  Blackwell's  Island,  when,  going  to  the  door  of  a  cell,  he 
pushed  back  the  sliding  board  from  the  grating  and  bade 
me  look  in.  The  room  was  lighted  by  a  small  window  near 
the  ceiling.  All  around,  to  the  height  of  perhaps  eight  feet 
or  more,  it  was  lined  with  padding  covered  with  leather,  and 
on  the  floor,  spread  over  its  entire  breadth,  there  was  a  mat- 
tress having  a  similar  appearance  to  the  padding  on  the 
sides.  On  the  mattress  there  lay  a  man,  probably  not  more 
than  five-and-twenty  years  of  age,  bareheaded,  barefooted, 
stripped  of  coat  and  vest,  and  having  his  arms  tightly  bound 
behind  him  with  strong  cords.  He  had  dropped  asleep  for 
a  moment  or  two,  and  was  breathing  heavily.  "  There !" 
said  the  warden,  as  he  turned  away,  "  that  is  the  end  of  his 
debauch.  He  is  suffering  from  delirium  tremens,  and  we 
have  put  him  in  there  to  keep  him  from  injuring  himself." 
Ah !  thought  I,  he  is  somebody's  son  ;  and  my  heart  bled 
as  I  looked  upon  his  degradation.  This  is  what  it  comes 
to  "  at  the  last !"  Yet  that,  after  all,  is  not  the  last ;  for  the 
book  before  me  says,  "  No  drunkard  shall  inherit  the  king- 
dom of  heaven."  O  thou  !  whosoever  thou  art,  Avho  art  the 
victim  of  this  appetite,  wilt  thou  lay  these  things  to  heart  ? 
I  know  thou  feelest  thy  slaveiy  and  hatest  thy  chains ;  but 
if  thou  wouldst  be  free,  thyself,  by  God's  help,  "  must  strike 
the  blow."  Rise,  then,  in  the  might  of  thy  manhood,  and, 
by  the  supplicated  help  of  God's  Holy  Spirit,  snap  asun- 
der the  bands  wherewith  thine  enemy  has  bound  thee.  Re- 
member Belshazzar,  and  fling  away  thy  cup  ere  yet  thou  art 
overtaken  by  Belshazzar's  doom  ! 

But  notice,  secondly,  the  profanity  by  which  this  banquet 
was  characterized.  The  king  called  for  the  sacred  vessels 
which  his  grandfather  had  brought  from  the  Temple  of  Je- 
rusalem, and  he  desecrated  them  by  employing  them  in  his 
idolatrous  orgies.    Observe,  it  is  said  that  he  did  this  "  while 


Belshazzar's  Feast.  97 

he  tasted  the  wine,"  and  as  a  consequence,  doubtless,  of  the 
excitement  produced  in  him  by  the  drinking  of  it.  It  is 
always  thus. 

There  is  an  old  fable  which  tells  of  a  man  who  had  the 
choice  which  of  three  sins  he  would  commit — drunkenness, 
adultery,  or  murder.  He  chose  drunkenness  as  being  ap- 
parently the  least ;  but  when  he  was  intoxicated,  so  the  story 
runs,  he  committed  both  the  others,  and  thus  ended  by  be- 
ing guilty  of  all  the  three.  There  is  deep  meaning  in  the 
fable ;  for  v/ho  shall  reckon  up  for  us  the  number  of  crimes 
committed  under  the  influence  of  strong  drink  ?  crimes 
from  the  very  thought  of  which  the  individuals  who  perpe- 
trated them  would  in  their  sober  senses  have  shrunk  back 
appalled. 

In  the  case  before  us,  it  could  not  but  be  that  the  im- 
pression of  Jehovah's  greatness  which  had  been  produced 
upon  Nebuchadnezzar,  and  through  him  upon  the  nation  at 
large,  had  remained  at  least  in  some  measure,  and  if  sober- 
ness had  ruled  the  hour,  instead  of  excess,  we  may  well 
believe  that  Belshazzar  and  his  lords  would  have  recoiled 
from  doing  such  indignity  to  the  God  of  the  Hebrews.  Idol- 
aters though  they  were,  the  very  regard  which  they  paid  to 
their  own  divinities,  not  to  speak  of  the  remembrance  of  the 
fiery  furnace  out  of  which  Jehovah  had  delivered  his  ser- 
vants, might  have  taught  them  reverence  for  the  vessels  of 
the  Temple;  but  no:  "They  drank  and  praised"  (that  is, 
"  toasted,"  for  in  this  heathen  practice  our  modern  custom, 
"  more  honored  in  the  breach  than  in  the  observance,"  had 
its  origin)  "  the  gods  of  gold  and  of  silver,  of  brass,  of  iron, 
of  wood  and  of  stone." 

Now,  it  is  not  possible  for  us  to  commit  this  sin  of  theirs 
precisely  in  the  same  form  as  that  in  which  they  committed 
it,  since  there  are  not  among  us,  as  in  the  Jewish  Temple 
there  were,  vessels  specially  and  peculiarly  consecrated  to 

5 


qS  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

God.  But  in  other  forms,  alas  !  profanity  too  is  rampant  in 
the  midst  of  us.  Who  among  us  has  not  often  had  his  ears 
pained  and  his  heart  sickened  by  the  unhallowed  use  of 
the  names  of  God  by  those  who  have  no  reverence  for  him 
in  their  hearts  ?  In  the  workshop  and  in  the  store,  as  well 
as  on  the  street  and  in  the  haunts  of  riot  and  iniquity,  one 
may  hear  the  dear  name  of  Jesus  garnishing  an  oath,  and 
horrid  imprecations  at  which  our  hair  does  stand  on  end 
are  become  common  even  among  the  children  on  our  streets. 

Oh  that  men  would  remember  that  holy  law  which  says 
that  "the  Lord  will  not  hold  him  guiltless  that  taketh  his 
name  in  vain !"  Oh  that  they  would  think  of  the  sinfulness 
of  their  profanity!  They  talk  of  it  as  a  habit;  they  ac- 
knowledge it  to  be  ungenteel ;  and  they  will  ask  pardon  of 
those  before  whom  they  have  spoken  the  horrid  words,  espe- 
cially if  there  should  chance  to  be  a  minister  among  them ; 
but  they  think  not  of  the  guilt  of  profane  swearing  before 
God !  Truly,  as  one  has  said,  the  swearer  serves  the  devil 
for  nothing.  "  Men  do  not  despise  a  thief  if  he  steal  to 
satisfy  his  soul  when  he  is  hungry ;"  and  there  may  be  some 
extenuation  for  other  forms  of  evil ;  but  what  does  the 
swearer  gain  by  his  profanity  ?  It  is  a  wanton  insult  to  the 
majesty  and  love  of  God.  Be  it  yours,  my  hearers,  not  only 
to  abstain  from  this  iniquity  yourselves,  but  also  to  check 
and  reprove  it  wherever  it  is  committed  by  others.  Keep 
your  lips  from  this  evil,  and  to  this  end  let  your  hearts  be 
filled  with  love  to  Jesus  and  reverence  for  God,  so  that  the 
first  petition  of  the  Master's  prayer  may  be  daily  answered 
in  your  life  as  well  as  offered  by  your  lips,  "  Hallowed  be 
thy  name." 

Notice,  thirdly,  that  this  night  was  one  of  supernatural 
visitation.  Fast  flew  the  hours,  and  boisterous  was  the 
mirth ;  merrily  the  laugh  went  round,  and  the  cup  was 
passed  from  hand  to  hand.     Who  cares  though  the  IMede 


Belshazzar's  Feast. 


99 


be  at  the  gates  and  all  around  the  walls  ?  Are  there  not 
two  years'  provisions  within  the  city  ?  and  will  not  its  fer- 
tile terraces  yield  more,  if  so  much  be  required  ?  Let  fear 
be  laughed  to  scorn,  or  drowned  in  the  flowing  bowl !  On 
with  the  revelry ;  let  it  know  no  pause  until  the  morning 
light !  But,  ah !  what  means  that  sudden  lull  in  the  noisy 
revel — that  break  in  the  madness  of  the  mirth  ?  Each  eye 
runs  along  the  hall,  and  in  a  moment  all  are  fixed  upon  the 
king.  Wildly  he  looks,  with  fixed  and  steady  glare,  upon 
the  wall  before  him,  his  eyeballs  almost  starting  from  their 
sockets.  Big  bead -like  drops  of  perspiration  stand  upon 
his  forehead ;  a  deathly  paleness  sits  upon  his  countenance ; 
the  uplifted  goblet  falls  from  his  palsied  hands,  and  his 
knees  smite  one  upon  another.  "  The  king  !  the  king ! 
what  aileth  him  ?"  is  now  the  cry.  But  he  gives  no  verbal 
answer.  He  simply  points,  with  a  new  shudder  of  agony, 
to  the  spot  on  which  his  gaze  is  fixed ;  and,  as  they  look 
there  with  him,  they,  too,  see  the  fingers  of  a  hand,  tracing, 
all  solemnly  and  slowly,  mysterious  characters  upon  the  wall. 
Sobered  on  the  instant  by  this  dread  appearance,  they 
summon  forthwith  to  the  royal  presence  the  astrologers, 
the  Chaldeans,  and  soothsayers,  if  haply  they  may  be  able 
to  decipher  the  strange  writing.  But  they  are  completely 
baffled ;  and  the  king,  too  surely  foreboding  its  true  mean- 
ing, sinks  into  remorse  and  dark  despair.  Where  now  the 
daring  spirit  of  the  sacrilegious  idolaters  ?  Where  now  the 
mirth  the  wine  provoked  ?  Silence,  as  of  the  grave,  reigns 
in  the  hall,  so  late  the  scene  of  jollity  and  noise.  In  his 
perplexity  the  queen-mother  comes  in,  and  reminds  him  of 
a  servant  whom  he  had  long  neglected,  and  whose  warnings 
he  had  oft  despised.  She  tells  him  of  Daniel,  and  his  great 
service  on  a  similar  occasion,  in  the  reign  of  Nebuchadnez- 
zar ;  and,  at  her  suggestion,  the  Hebrew  prophet  is  brought 
in  before  him.      Sternly  the  man  of  God  (repudiating  his 


lOO  Daniel  the  Beloved, 

proffered  gifts)  reminds  him  of  the  noble  opportunity  he 
possessed  of  serving  God ;  of  the  warning  that  had  been 
given  to  his  grandfather ;  of  his  own  pride,  idolatry,  sacri- 
lege ;  and,  most  of  all,  of  this — the  one  fatal  omission  of  his 
whole  life  —  that  "he  had  not  glorified  the  God  in  whose 
hands  his  breath  was,  and  whose  were  all  his  ways ;"  and 
then,  without  a  word  of  hope,  or  exhortation,  or  even  of  pity, 
he  reads  out  his  doom  :  "  God  hath  numbered  thy  kingdom, 
and  finished  it."  "  Thou  art  weighed  in  the  balances,  and 
art  found  wanting."  "  Thy  kingdom  is  divided,  and  given 
to  the  Medes  and  Persians." 

No  ray  of  hope  brightens  the  gloom  of  that  awful  sen- 
tence ;  it  is  dark,  dark,  eternally  dark.  And  why  so  ? 
Brethren,  let  us  hear  the  answer,  and  be  warned  by  this  ex- 
ample. It  was  because  Belshazzar  had  sinned  away  his 
"  day  of  grace."  Long  before,  when  Daniel  had  been  the 
messenger  of  God  to  Nebuchadnezzar,  he  had  counselled 
him  to  break  off  his  sins  by  righteousness,  and  his  iniqui- 
ties by  showing  mercy  to  the  poor,  if  it  might  be  a  length- 
ening of  his  tranquillity.  But  there  is  no  such  exhortation 
now,  for  Belshazzar  had  systematically  rejected  all  counsel 
from  the  Lord ;  and  now,  in  the  hour  of  his  distress,  the 
Lord  abandons  him,  saying,  "  Because  I  called,  and  thou 
didst  refuse,  because  I  stretched  out  my  hand,  and  thou 
didst  not  regard,  I  will  laugh  at  thy  calamity,  and  mock 
when  thy  fear  cometh."  It  is  now  too  late.  The  door  of 
grace  is  shut.  And  as  Belshazzar  comes  thundering  at  it, 
crying,  "  Open  unto  me  !"  the  answer  is  returned,  "  Dep'art 
from  me  ;  I  know  thee  not,  thou  worker  of  iniquity." 

O  sinner !  will  you  take  warning  from  a  case  like  this .'' ' 
Beware  lest,  in  your  continued  resistance  to  God's  author- 
ity, you  overstep  that  mysterious  boundary  that  separates 
his  forbearance  and  his  wrath,  and  he  be  provoked  to  give 
you  over  to  your  own  heart's  lusts.     I  dare  not  say  of  any 


Belshazzar's  Feast.  ioi 

J)f  you  that  you  have  crossed  that  Hmit ;  least  of  all  can  I 
say  it  of  those  who  most  fear  lest  they  have,  for  the  very  [ 
existence  of  that  fear  is  proof  that  they  have  not.  But  I  ', 
desire  to  put  you  on  your  guard  against  it ;  I  have  to  warn 
you  that  there  is  a  danger  of  your  doing  it,  and  to  urge 
you  to  come  now,  while  you  may,  and  avail  yourself  of  God's 
mercy  in  Christ  Jesus. 

"  Too  late  P^ — there  are  no  more  melancholy  words  in  the 
language  than  these.  Too  late  ! — I  have  heard  them  uttered 
by  a  brother,  as,  hurried  home  to  see  a  dying  father,  he  ar- 
rived only  to  be  told  that  he  had  breathed  his  last ;  and  not 
soon  shall  I  forget  the  agony  they  then  expressed.  Too  late! 
— I  have  known  them  uttered  by  a  skilful  surgeon,  when  he 
was  summoned  to  the  bedside  of  a  dying  man,  and  I  have 
marked  the  sadness  to  which  they  then  gave  birth.  Too  late! 
— I  have  heard  of  them  uttered  by  an  anxious  crowd,  as 
they  stood  gazing  on  a  burning  dwelling,  and  sadly  saw  the 
failure  of  those  who  sought  to  save  the  inmates  from  de- 
struction. Too  late! — I  have  known  them  uttered  by  the  no- 
ble crew  of  the  life-boat,  when,  as  they  put  out  to  the  sink- 
ing ship,  they  beheld  her  go  down  before  their  eyes,  and 
"  the  freighted  souls  within  her."  But,  oh !  none  of  these 
circumstances  are  half  so  heart-rending  as  those  in  which 
the  sinner  who  has  despised  his  day  must  find  himself  when 
the  terrible  discovery  is  made  that  he  is  too  late  to  enter 
heaven.  Very  powerfully  has  the  English  laureate  set  this 
lesson  to  the  music  of  his  verse,  in  one  of  those  lyrics  which 
are  the  gems  of  the  "  Idyls  of  the  King :" 

"  Late,  late,  so  late  !  and  dark  the  night  and  chill ! 
Late,  late,  so  late  !  but  we  can  enter  still. 
Too  late,  too  late  !  ye  cannot  enter  now. 

"  No  light  had  we  :  for  that  we  do  repent ; 
And  learning  this,  the  bridegroom  will  relent. 
Too  late,  too  late  !  ye  cannot  enter  now. 


102  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

"  No  light :  so  late  !  and  dark  and  chill  the  night ! 
Oh,  let  us  in,  that  we  may  find  the  light ! 
Too  late,  too  late  !  ye  cannot  enter  now. 

"Have  we  not  heard  the  bridegroom  is  so  sweet.' 
Oh,  let  us  in,  though  late,  to  kiss  his  feet  ! 
No,  no,  too  late  !  ye  cannot  enter  now." 

Oh,  may  God  grant  that  this  sad  exclusion  may  not  be 
the  doom  of  any  one  of  us  ! 

Notice,  finally,  that  this  was  a  night  of  terrible  retribu- 
tion. Not  long  v/as  the  execution  of  the  sentence  deferred 
after  it  had  been  pronounced ;  for  ere  the  morning  dawned 
Belshazzar  was  among  the  dead,  and  Babylon  was  in  the 
IMedo  -  Persians'  hands.  The  manner  in  which  this  was 
brought  about  is  described  alike  by  Herodotus  and  Xeno- 
phon,  and  is  in  exact  correspondence  with  the  prophecy  in 
the  fiftieth  and  fifty-first  chapters  of  Jeremiah.  Cyrus,  who 
had  command  of  the  besieging  army,  had  lain  for  a  long 
time  before  the  city,  and  had  almost  despaired  of  taking  it, 
when,  hearing  of  an  artificial  lake  which  a  former  queen 
had  made,  he  formed  the  j^lan  of  turning  the  waters  of  the 
Euphrates  into  that  old  and  now  dry  lake-bed,  and  so  ren- 
dering the  river  fordable  at  the  city.  To  understand  it  fur- 
ther, it  must  be  remembered  that  the  Euphrates  divided  the 
city  into  two  equal  parts ;  that  on  each  bank  of  the  river 
twenty-five  streets  ran  at  right  angles  to  the  river,  and  par- 
allel to  each  other;  while  the  whole  was  surrounded  by  a 
wall  sixty  miles  in  circumference.  The  vrall  was  carried 
over  the  river  at  each  end  of  the  town  by  a  bridge ;  and  at 
the  end  of  each  street,  on  the  river -side,  there  were  large, 
massive  gates,  which  were  locked  nightly.  When  the  v/aters 
had  been  diverted  from  their  channel,  the  troops  stationed 
at  either  end  waded  through  below  the  bridges,  the  stream 
taking  them  only  up  to  the  loins.     But  even  although  they 


Belshazzar's  Feast.  103 

had  reached  so  far,  they  would  still  have  been  stopped  by 
the  gates,  had  it  not  been  for  the  fact  that,  owing  to  the 
prevalence  of  dissipation  and  carousal,  consequent,  as  He- 
rodotus says,  on  its  being  a  festival  night,  the  gates  were 
carelessly,  and  contrary  to  usual  custom,  left  open.  Thus, 
at  each  end  an  entrance  was  effected,  and  the  words  of  Jer- 
emiah were  fulfilled  :  "  One  post  shall  run  to  meet  another, 
to  show  that  the  city  is  taken  at  the  end,"  or,  as  the  word 
might  be  better  rendered,  "at  the  two  ends  —  endwise." 
Having  thus  got  into  the  city,  the  Median  troops  advanced 
on  toward  the  palace,  and  to  their  swords  Belshazzar  fell  a 
victim. 

My  brethren,  when  God  threatens,  he  means  what  he  says, 
and  he  will  bring  it  to  pass.  He  is  never  at  a  loss  for  in- 
struments ;  and  he  will  do  whatsoever  he  hath  spoken.  Mert 
seem  to  act  as  if  he  would  prove  faithful  only  to  his  prom- 
ises ;  but  that  is  a  miserable  delusion.  God  is  faithful  who 
has  threatened  ;  and,  O  sinner  !  he  has  threatened  thee  with 
wTath  if  thou  repent  not.  Think  not,  therefore,  that  thou 
shalt  escape  his  just  judgment,  unless  now  thou  betake  thy- 
self to  him  in  Christ.  His  threatenings  are  no  mere  utter- 
ances of  passion,  soon  to  pass  away,  as  the  storm  passes 
from  the  face  of  ocean ;  they  have  their  root  in  his  very 
nature,  and  he  must  cease  to  be  what  he  is  if  he  fail  to  car- 
ry them  out.  The  very  same  principle  of  his  nature  that 
leads  him  to  keep  his  promises  disposes  him  also  to  per- 
form his  threatenings ;  and  wherever  we  have  the  one  man- 
ifestation of  it,  we  have  the  other  also,  like  the  shadow  fol- 
lowing the  sunlight. 

You  think  of  Noah  in  the  Ark,  and  as  you  hear  his  even- 
ing psalm  ascend  from  out  his  place  of  safety,  you  say,  "  God 
is  faithful  who  has  promised  ;"  but  as  you  look  around  upon 
the  wide  was*:e  of  waters  that  has  covered  the  earth,  and 
hear  the  gurgling  cry  of  some  strong  swimmer  as  he  sinks 


I04  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

beneath  the  wave,  you  are  compelled  to  add,  "  God  is  faith- 
ful who  has  threatened."  You  think  of  Lot,  angel-guided 
out  of  Sodom,  and  though  he  were  saved  yet  so  as  by  fire, 
you  say,  "  God  is  faithful  who  has  promised ;"  but  when, 
with  Abraham,  in  the  early  morning,  you  look  over  the 
plain,  and  see  the  smoke  of  the  country  ascending  like  the 
smoke  of  a  furnace,  you  are  made  to  add,  "  God  is  faithful 
who  has  threatened."  You  behold  the  tribes  of  Israel  stand- 
ing on  the  Red  Sea  shore,  and  as  you  hear  their  glorious 
anthem  ring  out  above  the  noise  of  the  waves,  you  say, 
"  God  is  faithful  who  has  promised ;"  but  as  you  look  be- 
hind, and  mark  how  the  refluent  billows  have  submerged 
the  haughty  host  of  Pharaoh,  you  are  constrained  to  say 
again,  "  God  is  faithful  who  has  threatened."  You  think  of 
the  last  grand  assize,  and  as  you  behold  the  righteous  going 
into  life  eternal  you  can  hear  them  sing,  "  God  is  faithful 
who  has  promised ;"  while  from  out  the  mingled  sobs  and 
groans  of  the  wicked,  as  they  are  driven  to  their  own  place, 
there  rise  these  solemn  words,  "  God  is  faithful  who  has 
threatened." 

Let,  then,  the  promises  of  the  Lord  win  you  to  repent- 
ance, and  the  threatenings  of  Jehovah  warn  you  from  im- 
penitency.  Yea,  even  now,  turn  and  look  to  Jesus,  so  that, 
Vv'hen  weighed  in  the  balances  at  last,  you  may  not  be  found 
wanting,  but  may  stand  in  him.  "  Turn,  and  live  ye  ;"  there 
is  the  promise.  "  If  he  turn  not,  he  will  whet  his  sword. 
He  hath  bent  his  bow,  and  made  it  ready ;"  there  is  the 
threatening.     Make  thy  choice  between  them. 


VII. 

DANIEL  IN  THE  DEN. 

Daniel  vii.,  1-28. 

THE  question  who  this  Darius  the  Mede  was  has  great- 
ly perplexed  the  commentators  on  the  Book  of  Dan- 
iel ;  but  it  would  serve  no  good  purpose  to  enter  here  upon 
its  minute  investigation.  Let  it  suffice  to  say  that  the  an- 
swer which  seems  to  me  to  be  beset  with  fewest  difficulties 
is  that  which  regards  him  as  Cyaxeres  the  Second,  the  uncle 
and  father-in-law  of  Cyrus.  This  view  at  once  harmonizes 
with  the  statement  of  Xenophon,  that  he  was  the  son  of  As- 
tyages,  and  ascended  the  throne  after  him,  and  with  that  of 
Josephus,  who  affirms  that  "he  was  the  son  of  Astyages,  but 
had  another  name  among  the  Greeks ;"  while,  at  the  same 
time,  it  accounts  for  the  fact  mentioned  in  the  concluding 
verse  of  the  preceding  chapter,  that  at  the  taking  of  Baby- 
lon he  was  about  sixty  two  years  of  age.  It  is  right  to  say, 
however,  that  this  is  only  one  of  three  different  ojDinions 
which  have  been  advocated,  and  that  probably  we  must  wait 
for  the  correct  solution  of  the  difficulty  until  some  Babylo- 
nian inscription  furnishes  the  data  on  which  it  can  be  made. 
For  the  better  management  of  the  empire,  Darius  divided 
it  into  one  hundred  and  twenty  provinces,  over  each  of 
which  he  appointed  a  responsible  officer.  Over  these,  again, 
he  set  three  presidents  or  satraps,  and,  as  the  chief  of  these, 
he  named  Daniel,  "  because  he  had  an  excellent  spirit  in 
him."  These  presidents  corresponded  somewhat  to  mod- 
ern secretaries  of  state,  while  Daniel,  as  the  head  over  them 

r* 


io6  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

all,  was  in  a  position  similar  to  that  of  the  prime  minister 
of  a  European  kingdom,  or  like  the  grand-vizier  of  an  East- 
ern empire. 

His  elevation  to  this  dignity  need  not  be  in  the  least  de- 
gree surprising  unto  us ;  for  altogether  irrespective  of  the 
special  providence  which  v/atched  over  him,  and  which  was 
as  clearly  conspicuous  in  his  life  as  in  that  of  Joseph,  we 
may  account  for  his  exaltation  to  this  new  dignity  on  pure- 
ly natural  principles.  When  Darius  entered  Babylon,  he 
would  find  every  one  talking  of  the  events  of  that  dreadful 
night  of  wickedness  and  retribution  which  issued  in  Belshaz- 
zar's  death,  and  all  accounts  which  he  received  would  set 
Daniel  in  the  fore-front.  Nor  was  this  all.  The  mention  of 
the  part  he  acted  in  deciphering  the  handwriting  on  the  wall 
would  be  invariably  connected  with  the  rehearsal  of  all  that 
he  had  done  in  the  reign  of  Nebuchadnezzar,  and  of  all  that 
he  had  been  to  that  great  monarch.  Most  naturally,  there- 
fore, would  the  new  emperor  desire  to  avail  himself  of  his 
services,  the  rather  that,  perhaps,  from  personal  intercourse 
with  him,  he  had  discovered  his  talents  and  abilities  ;  and,  as 
the  best  means  of  securing  his  assistance  and  allegiance,  he 
placed  him  in  the  highest  position  which  he  had  at  his  dis- 
posal. This  view  of  the  case  is  in  no  degree  inconsistent 
with  the  fact  that  from  all  accounts  Darius  was  himself  a 
man  given  up  to  sensuality  and  self-indulgence,  since  not 
unfrequently  in  history  we  have  instances  of  princes  of  that 
character  who  had  the  discernment  to  discover,  and  the  wis- 
dom to  employ,  men  of  the  highest  attainments  and  the 
most  unswerving  integrity. 

But  it  could  not  be  expected  that  the  selection  of  Daniel 
for  such  a  post  of  distinction  would  be  tamely  acquiesced 
in  by  all  who  were  around  the  court.  In  particular,  the 
princes  of  the  kingdoms  were  filled  with  envy  at  the  ap- 
pointment of  the  Hebrew,  and  vowed  among  themselves  to 


Daniel  in  the  Den.  107 

have  him  removed  as  soon  as  possible.  Many  reasons 
might  be  assigned  for  this.  For  one  thing,  his  age  would 
be  distasteful  to  them,  for  Daniel  was  now  advancing  to- 
ward fourscore  years,  and  they  might  allege  with  plausibil- 
ity that  he  was  now  beyond  that  time  of  life  when  any  one 
could  be  expected  to  discharge  with  energy  and  efficiency 
the  duties  of  the  office  with  which  he  had  been  intrusted. 
Then,  again,  he  was  a  foreigner.  He  had  taken  no  part  in 
those  campaigns  which  had  created  the  Medo-Persian  Em- 
pire, and  it  might  seem  to  them  a  crying  injustice  that  the 
greatest  honor  in  the  new  kingdom  should  be  conferred 
upon  one  who  had  done  nothing  whatever  to  assist  in  its 
formation.  But,  most  of  all,  their  enmity  would  be  roused 
by  the  character  of  Daniel.  Had  the  new  vizier  been  a 
man  who  was  likely  to  wink  at  their  misdeeds,  or  to  share 
in  their  peculations  and  dishonesties,  they  might  have  been 
fain  to  put  up  with  his  elevation,  and  their  self-interest 
might  have  held  their  personal  animosity  in  check ;  but 
when  they  found  that  he  was  distinguished  by  the  highest 
principle,  and  would  tolerate  no  semblance  of  injustice  ei- 
ther toward  the  subjects  on  the  one  hand,  or  the  emperor 
on  the  other,  the  enmity  which  they  felt  on  other  grounds 
was  greatly  intensified,  and  they  resolved,  by  fair  means  or 
by  foul,  to  get  rid  of  his  supervision.  Accordingly,  they 
scrutinized  his  conduct  through  the  keen  microscope  of 
malice,  if  haply  they  might  discover  anything  on  which  they 
might  found  an  accusation  against  him.  But  they  soon  per- 
ceived that  all  such  search  was  vain,  and  that  if  they  ever 
hoped  to  circumvent  him,  it  must  be  in  some  matter  affect- 
ing his  religion.  How  honorable  all  this  was  to  Daniel,  I. 
need  hardly  stay  to  remark.  It  tells  us  that  though  he 
stood  "  in  that  fierce  light  that  beats  upon  a  throne  and 
blackens  every  blot,"  nothing  in  the  least  degree  degrading 
or  immoral  could  be  alleged  against  him  ;  and  it  tells  us, 


io8  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

also,  that  he  made  no  secret  of  his  religious  convictions,  but 
continued,  as  aforetime,  an  humble,  earnest,  and  devoted  ser- 
vant of  Jehovah,  Exaltation  has  often  proved  perilous  to 
character.  Not  every  man  can  stand  with  unswimming  head 
upon  the  dizzy  height  of  earthly  greatness ;  not  every  hand 
can  hold  with  untrembling  steadiness  the  brimming  cup 
of  worldly  prosperity.  Too  often  as  men  become  "full," 
they  deny  the  Lord ;  and,  either  because  religion  is  deemed 
unfashionable,  or  because  they  think  it  stands  in  the  way  of 
their  further  success,  many,  who  in  lowly  life  have  been  re- 
markable for  piety,  have  in  the  heyday  of  their  social  ele- 
vation forgotten  God,  and  left  their  religious  convictions  in 
the  valley  from  which  they  came.  But  it  was  not  so  with 
Daniel.  The  same  regard  to  the  law  of  God  by  which  he 
was  distinguished  as  a  youth  in  the  royal  college  character- 
ized him  in  the  administration  of  the  office  of  president  of 
the  kingdom.  His  piety  was  not  of  that  cloistral  sort  which 
is  hidden  from  human  observation,  but  it  pervaded  his  life ; 
and  so  it  vv^as  that  those  who  came,  even  in  the  casual  inter- 
course of  official  life,  into  contact  with  him,  felt  its  influence 
and  were  made  to  confess  its  power. 

In  this  religion  of  his,  therefore,  which  his  enemies  had 
rightly  discovered  to  be  the  strongest  element  of  his  char- 
acter, they  saw  their  only  hope  of  undermining  him,  and 
they  went  most  insidiously  to  work  to  compass  his  destruc- 
tion. Insidiously,  I  said,  for  they  did  not  openly  and  man- 
fully accuse  him  of  unfaithfulness  to  Darius  because  he  was 
faithful  to  Jehovah.  Had  they  done  that,  the  king  would  at 
once  have  seen  their  design,  and  would  have  been  on  his 
guard  against  their  machinations.  But  they  preferred  anoth- 
er course,  and  came  to  the  monarch,  wishing  him  to  enact  a 
law  which,  in  appearance,  seemed  designed  only  to  honor 
himself.  They  pretended  that  they  were  deeply  solicitous 
for  his  glory,  and  asked  him  to  make  a  firm  decree  that 


Daniel  in  the  Den.  109 

whosoever  should  present  a  petition  to  any  god  or  man  for 
thirty  days,  save  to  the  king  himself,  should  be  cast  into  the 
den  of  lions.  Such  a  law,  to  our  Western  ears,  seems  per- 
fectly absurd,  and  no  doubt,  as  Dr.  Pusey  says,  "  religiously 
viewed,  it  was  extreme  insanity ;"  but,  as  the  same  author 
has  affirmed,  "  that  which  was  in  truth  insane — to  pray  to 
man  as  if  he  were  God,  to  neglect  God  for  man — is  simple 
matter  of  fact.  The  Persians  looked  upon  their  king  as  the 
representative  of  Ormuzd,  as  indwelt  by  him,  and,  as  such, 
gave  him  divine  honors.  Persians,  Persian  monuments, 
contemporary  Greek  authors,  all  attest  this.  'With  us,' 
said  Artabanus  to  Themistocles,  '  of  many  and  good  laws, 
this  is  the  best — to  honor  the  king,  and  worship  him  as  the 
image  of  God,  who  preserveth  all  things.'  Curtius  says, 
*  The  Persians  worship  their  kings  among  their  gods ;'  and 
Isocrates  speaks  of  them  as  'worshipping  indeed  a  mortal 
man,  and  addressing  him  as  a  divine  being,  but  dishonoring 
the  gods  more  than  men.'  "*  In  the  light  of  this  fact,  then, 
we  can  see  how  the  edict  proposed  by  the  princes  neither 
shocked  Darius  nor  indicated  to  him  in  any  way  that  it  had 
sprung  out  of  a  conspiracy  against  his  favorite  minister. 
Much,  indeed,  might  be  said  by  the  princes  in  its  behalf. 
The  Babylonians  and  other  provinces  had  only  recently 
come  under  his  dominion,  and  they  might  represent  that  the 
object  of  the  decree  was  to  obtain,  from  these  new  subjects, 
special  recognition  of  the  king  as  the  representative  of  the 
Supreme  Power  and  invested  with  his  delegated  authority. 

Nor  is  this  all.  That  the  Persians  did  somehow  thus 
regard  their  king  is  evident  from  the  fact  so  frequently 
brought  before  us,  both  in  this  history  and  in  that  of  Es- 
ther, that  the  royal  edicts  could  not  be  altered.  A  man 
claiming  to  act  through  a  divine  prescience  could  not  afford 

*  Pusey's  "  Lectures,"  pp.  445,  446. 


no  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

to  appear  fallible  or  changeable ;  hence,  to  keep  up  the  fic- 
tion of  the  divinity  of  royalty,  the  decrees  which  issued  from 
him  were  unalterable.  This  being  the  case,  these  princes 
easily  prevailed  upon  the  king  to  do  as  they  wished ;  and 
certainly,  we  who  live  in  an  age  when  a  conclave  of  arch- 
bishops and  bishops — educated  men,  in  the  full  blaze  of  the 
enlightenment  of  the  nineteenth  century — have  solemnly 
issued  an  edict  affirming  the  infallibility  of  a  fellow-mortal, 
need  not  be  surprised  at  the  success  of  these  unscrupulous 
men  in  a  heathen  kingdom,  some  hundreds  of  years  before 
the  birth  of  Christ. 

The  penalty  suggested  by  these  princes  is  peculiar,  and 
may  be  noted  as  a  minute  coincidence  with  ancient  history. 
Had  this  book  been  the  work  of  an  impostor,  then  we  may  be 
sure  that,  having  already  spoken  of  a  burning  fiery  furnace 
as  having  been  in  Babylon  the  means  of  punishing  those 
who  refused  to  worship  the  golden  image  which  Nebuchad- 
nezzar had  set  up,  the  author  would  again  have  specified 
fire  as  the  element  of  execution.  But  this  would  have  been 
altogether  out  of  keeping  with  the  Medo-Persian  custom  ; 
for  the  Medes  and  Persians  were  fire -worshippers,  and  it 
would  have  been  regarded  as  impious  in  the  extreme  to 
consign  to  the  sacred  flames  those  who  had  been  guilty 
either  of  high  treason  or  of  any  other  crime.  In  the  omis- 
sion of  fire,  therefore,  as  the  penalty  of  disobedience,  we 
have  a  coincidence  with  ancient  Persian  superstition,  which, 
because  it  is  minute  and  undesigned,  is  a  valuable  witness- 
bearer  to  the  authenticity  of  the  narrative.  Moreover,  we 
know  that  it  was  no  uncommon  thing  among  the  Persians 
to  consign  criminals  to  wild  beasts.  Thus,  Bertholdt  has 
said,  "  The  enclosures  of  wild  beasts,  especially  of  lions, 
which  the  kings  of  Asia  and  North-western  Africa  formerly 
had,  as  they  have  at  the  present  day,  were  generally  con- 
structed underground,  but  were  ordinarily  caves  which  had 


Daniel  in  the  Den.  m 

been  excavated  for  the  purpose,  wailed  up  at  the  sides,  and 
then  enclosed  within  an  outer  wall,  through  which  a  door 
led  from  the  outer  wall  to  the  space  within  the  walls  within 
which  persons  could  pass  round  and  contemplate  the  wild 
beasts."* 

Such,  then,  was  the  proposed  decree,  with  the  suggested 
penalty.  We  do  not  hear  that  Daniel  was  present  either  at 
the  concoction  of  the  edict  or  at  the  time  when  it  was  sub- 
mitted to  the  king.  If  he  had  been  there,  he  would  most 
probably  have  protested  against  it,  and  from  his  weight  with 
the  monarch  might  very  likely  have  carried  his  point.  But 
conspirators  so  astute  as  the  princes  were,  would  be  sure  to 
embrace  some  opportunity  when  he  was  absent  from  the 
city ;  and  so,  in  all  probability,  Daniel  knew  nothing  about 
it  until,  on  his  return  to  his  residence,  he  was  informed  con- 
cerning it.  But,  whensoever  or  howsoever  he  first  heard  of 
it,  he  did  not  require  a  long  time  to  make  up  his  mind  how 
he  would  act  in  the  matter.  He  was  pre-eminently  a  man 
of  decision,  and  wherever  his  duty  to  God  was  concerned 
he  knev/  only  one  course  to  follow.  Indeed,  we  can  scarce- 
ly conceive  that  he  deliberated  a  single  moment  as  to  his 
duty  or  as  to  his  determination.  He  would  say  within  him- 
self, "  It  is  not  necessary  for  me  to  live,  and,  sooner  or  later, 
death  will  come  to  me.  What  does  it  matter  whether  it 
come  by  the  attack  of  wild  beasts  or  whatever  else }  I  can 
die,  but  I  cannot  be  guilty  of  such  blasphemous  idolatry 
as  to  pray  to  Darius  as  a  god ;  neither  can  I  allow  myself, 
through  the  fear  of  man,  to  be  deprived  of  the  blessed  priv- 
ilege of  communion  with  Jehovah."  So  he  went  about  his 
devotions  as  before,  determined  to  let  things  otherwise  take 
their  course,  and  casting  himself  on  the  gracious  help  of  the 
Most  High. 

*  Barnes's  "Commentarv,"  /«  /oco. 


112  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

"He  v/ent  into  his  house,  and,  his  windows  being  open  in 
his  chamber  toward  Jerusalem,  he  kneeled  upon  his  knees 
three  times  a  day,  and  prayed,  and  gave  thanks  before  his 
God."  Now,  at  first  sight,  this  looks  like  ostentation ;  but 
when  we  are  fully  acquainted  with  the  whole  case,  we  find 
there  was  nothing  of  display  about  it ;  for,  first,  it  was  the 
habit  of  his  life  to  act  after  this  fashion,  and  had  he  altered 
it  at  that  particular  time,  it  would  have  been  said,  and  with 
some  measure  of  justice  too,  that  he  was  afraid  of  the  con- 
sequences that  would  ensue  if  he  continued  to  do  as  he 
had  done  before.  But  such  a  thing  would  have  been  disas- 
trous. It  would  have  ruined  his  character.  It  would  have 
destroyed  his  influence,  and  he  had  better  have  died  than 
have  lived  on  to  be  the  contempt  and  by-word  of  the  hea- 
then for  his  cowardice  and  inconsistency.  But,  second,  this 
mode  of  procedure  which  Daniel  adopted  in  his  devotions 
was,  for  a  Jew,  perfectly  rational  and  right.  He  was  taught 
to  regard  Jerusalem  as  the  city  of  the  Great  King.  There 
had  been  the  temple,  and  the  shechinah,  and  the  mercy- 
seat  ;  and  that  there  was  some  peculiar  significance  in  turn- 
ing toward  Jerusalem  is  evident  from  the  fact  that  even  in 
his  dedication  prayer  at  the  opening  of  the  temple  Solomon 
refers  to  it.*  No  doubt,  therefore,  the  custom  up  to  that 
time  had  been  to  look  toward  the  tabernacle ;  and  if  you 
think  a  moment  or  two,  you  will  speedily  discover  how  this 
came  to  be  the  case.  In  the  tabernacle,  as  afterward  in  the 
temple,  was  the  holy  of  holies,  where  was  the  ark,  whose  lid 
was  sprinkled  with  the  blood  of  atonement  and  overshad- 
owed by  the  wings  of  the  cherubim,  between  which  the  sym- 
bol of  the  Divine  Presence  ever  hovered.  Now,  in  turning 
toward  that  in  prayer,  the  pious  Jew  recognized  the  neces- 
sity of  propitiation  in  order  to  acceptance  with  God.     He 

*   I  Kings  viii.,  44-4S. 


Daniel  in  the  Den.  113 

cried  to  God,  not  simply  as  the  Supreme  Being,  but  to  God 
as  propitiated  by  sacrifice.  He  approached  him  thus  as  his 
covenant  God  through  a  mediator,  which  was  at  the  same 
time  a  sacrifice.  Turning  toward  Jerusalem,  therefore,  was 
to  the  pious  Jew  substantially  the  same  thing  as  approach- 
ing God  through  Christ  is  now  to  the  Christian.  It  was  the 
'acknowledgment  of  a  mediator  and  atonement.  It  was  a 
pleading  of  atonement ;  it  was  to  him  what  the  formula 
"for  Christ's  sake,"  when  we  intelligently  use  it,  is  to  us. 
That  I  am  not  guilty  of  over-refining  here  is  clear  from 
the  words  of  Jesus  to  the  woman  at  the  well,  in  which  he 
plainly  intimated  that,  up  till  the  time  at  which  he  spoke, 
the  Jews  were  right  in  maintaining  that  Jerusalem  was  the 
place  where  men  ought  to  worship  ;  but  that  by  his  appear- 
ance, and  from  and  after  the  moment  when  he  was  speak- 
ing, all  this  was  changed,  and  men  now  might  worship  the 
Father  anywhere,  provided  they  worshipped  him  as  Father, 
and  in  spirit  and  in  truth.*  But  why  did  the  appearance 
of  Jesus  do  away  with  the  localizing  of  worship  at  Jerusa- 
lem ?  Because,  I  answer,  he  is  the  mediator  and  sacrifice 
of  a  new  covenant,  wherein  the  holy  of  holies  is  heaven,  and 
the  outer  tabernacle  earth ;  so  that  now  men  from  any  por- 
tion of  the  surface  of  the  earth  may  approach  Jehovah,  pro- 
vided only  they  approach  him  through  Christ.  Until  Christ 
came,  therefore,  the  Jews  were  right  in  praying  toward  Jeru- 
salem. 

Still,  again,  Daniel  prayed  toward  Jerusalem  to  show  his 
faith  that  the  people  would  yet  again  possess  the  holy  city. 
He  had  the  deep  conviction  that  the  captivity  was  ere  long 
to  cease,  and  he  would  show  the  strength  of  his  confidence 
in  that  future  event  by  looking  westward  while  he  made 
supplication. 

*  John  iv.,  21-24. 


114  Daniel  the  Beloved, 

These  considerations,  therefore,  will  be  enough  to  show 
that  Daniel  could  not  take  refuge  in  the  spirituality  of  God, 
or  seek  to  worship  him  in  any  other  way  than  he  had  been 
accustomed  to  do. 

I  am  not  sure,  however,  that  his  devotion  was  so  public 
as  at  first  we  are  apt  to  imagine,  for  in  order  to  discover 
him  his  enemies  had  to  assemble,  and  the  phrase  rendered 
"found  Daniel  praying"  literally  implies  that  they  found 
him  after  a  search,  so  that  they  had  used  means  to  discov- 
er whether  or  not  he  obeyed  the  intolerant  enactment.  Of 
course  they  found  him.  They  knew  they  would  so  find  him  ; 
and  right  merrily  they  went  to  tell  the  king,  chuckling  the 
while  over  the  downfall  of  their  hated  president. 

When  the  monarch  heard  what  they  had  to  tell,  the  full 
truth  for  the  first  time  presented  itself  to  his  viev/.  He 
found  that  he  had  been  cunningly  caught  in  the  trap  as  well 
as  Daniel,  for  the  unchangeability  that  characterized  the 
Persian  laws  would  not  allow  him  to  draw  back,  and  he  saw 
nothing  for  it  but  that  Daniel  must  die.  And  yet  what  a 
stupid  figment  that  was  to  come  between  him  and  justice ! 
Even  as  he  yielded  to  it,  one  can  see  that  the  king  was  not 
satisfied  with  the  subterfuge.  His  conscience  told  him  that 
he  might  and  could  deliver  his  valued  servant ;  yet,  under 
an  alleged  necessity,  which  was  no  necessity  at  all,  he  at 
length  gave  him  up  to  the  lion's  den.  No  doubt  he  labored 
till  the  going-down  of  the  sun  to  deliver  him.  No  doubt, 
also,  he  was  very  sad  and  sorry  at  all  that  had  transpired ; 
but  yet  he  did  the  deed,  and  gave  up  the  best  man  in  his 
court  to  the  machinations  of  his  enemies. 

Ah !  how  often  this  has  been  repeated  in  history  1  We 
think  of  Herod,  who  loved  John,  in  a  sense,  and  heard  him 
gladly,  and  who  yet  sorrowfully  gave  him  up  to  the  execu- 
tioner's axe,  under  the  idea  that  he  must  keep  his  promise 
to  a  giddy  girl,  and  stand  Vv^ell  with  the  drunken  revellers 


Daniel  in  the  Den.  115 

by  whom  he  was  surrounded.  We  think  of  Pilate,  \vash- 
ing  his  hands  before  the  crowd,  as  if  that  would  cleanse  his 
heart  from  the  bloody  spot  by  which  it  was  stained  when  he 
gave  up  Jesus  to  the  cross.  We  think  of  multitudes  in  a 
lower  grade  of  society,  who  after  some  deed  of  drunkenness, 
or  dishonesty,  or  meanness,  shelter  themselves  behind  the 
subterfuge,  that  they  could  not  help  themselves,  because 
they  were  under  the  necessity  of  doing  as  they  did. 

''  Under  the  necessity !"  Is  not  sin  an  act  of  the  will  1 
and  is  not  the  will  free  ?  And  if  the  necessity  be  so  great 
as  they  represent,  why  their  sorrow  and  distress  ?  Ah  !  the 
conscience  will  not  be  thus  juggled  with ;  and  you  may  rely 
upon  it  that  wherever  remorse  is,  there  is  the  inner  con- 
sciousness that  the  man  could  have  done  otherwise  if  he 
had  chosen. 

We  know  not  whether  Daniel  was  present  while  the  king 
labored  to  deliver  him  ;  but  if  he  was,  he  would  be  saddened 
by  the  sight  of  the  monarch's  weakness,  and  niight  pity  his 
lack  of  energy  and  determination. 

When  Palissy,  the  Huguenot  potter,  was  lying  a  prisoner 
in  the  Bastile  for  his  adherence  to  the  Protestant  faith,  it 
is  said  that  the  King  of  France,  who  had  a  great  regard 
for  him,  visited  him  in  his  dungeon,  and  told  him  that  if  he 
did  not  comply  with  the  established  religion,  he  should  be 
forced,  however  unwillingly,  to  leave  him  in  the  hands  of  his 
enemies.  "  Forced,  sire  !"  replied  the  noble  old  man,  with 
all  the  energy  and  fire  of  his  earlier  years  ;  "  this  is  not  to 
speak  like  a  king ;  but  they  who  force  you  cannot  force  me. 
I  can  die." 

So  I  doubt  not  Daniel  felt  as  he  went  out  from  the  royal 
presence  to  be  led  to  the  lions'  den.  True,  the  king  did  say 
as  he  was  going,  "  Thy  God  whom  thou  servest  continually, 
he  will  deliver  thee  ;"  but  for  all  so  pious  as  that  speech 
appears,  we  are  forced  to  regard  it  as  absurd.     He  looked 


ii6  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

to  Providence,  forsooth,  to  undo  the  wrong  which  he  might 
and  ought  to  have  himself  prevented ;  but  he  was  not  the 
last  who  has  acted  after  this  fashion.  Ah,  how  often  men 
have  done  wrong  to  their  neighbors,  and  then  piously,  or, 
/  rather,  impiously  and  hypocritically,  told  them  to  trust  God 
that  all  would  yet  be  well !  What  a  mockery  of  one's  mis- 
ery is  this  !  And  hov/  true  the  words  that  even  "  the  tender 
mercies  of  the  wicked  are  cruel !" 

But  Daniel  had  other  thoughts  in  his  heart  than  for  the 
king.  His  spirit  was  filled  with  faith.  He  knew  that  God 
would  either  sustain  him  to  die  for  his  glory,  or  deliver  him 
out  of  the  mouth  of  the  lion,  and  so  he  went  bravely  forward. 
And  his  faith  reaped  a  rich  reward ;  for,  although  the  door 
into  the  den  was  sealed  after  Daniel  had  been  thrust  into 
it,  the  seal  could  not  keep  out  the  protection  of  his  God, 
and  so  it  happened  that  when  the  morning  dawned,  the 
king,  whose  conscience  would  not  let  him  rest,  found  that 
he  was  alive.  One  can  imagine  the  relief  which  the  mon- 
arch would  feel  when  he  heard  his  servant's  voice,  and  how 
eagerly  he  would  hasten  to  have  him  removed  from  his 
place  of  imprisonment. 

But  we  cannot  omit  a  passing  reference  to  the  words  of 
Daniel,  "  My  God  hath  sent  his  angel,  and  hath  shut  the 
lions'  mouths  that  they  have  not  hurt  me."  "  My  God !" 
What  a  familiar  confidence  there  is  in  these  words  !  "  His 
angel !"  And  so  Daniel  was  not  without  company  in  the 
den  of  lions.  The  angel  of  the  covenant,  who  had  been 
with  his  three  friends  in  the  furnace,  had  been  his  compan- 
ion. The  second  person  of  the  blessed  Trinit}^,  perhaps 
also  in  human  form,  had  been  with  him.  What  holy  com- 
munings they  must  have  had !  what  happy  fellowship ! 
There  was  no  music,  nor  dancing,  nor  gladness,  in  the  pal- 
ace of  Darius  that  night ;  but  there  was  true  celestial  joy  in 
the  intercourse  between  Daniel  and  the  angel  in  the  den. 


Daniel  in  the  Den. 


117 


No  wonder  the  lions  were  subdued  into  harmlessness.  They 
recognized  their  Lord,  and  fawned  about  his  feet  or  leaped 
on  him  in  demonstrations  of  affection,  giving  him  the  "  lam- 
bent homage  "  of  their  tongues.  As,  long  after,  the  winds 
and  waves  obeyed  him,  and  cowered  down  into  silence  and 
smoothness  on  the  Lake  of  Galilee  at  his  word,  so  now  the 
lions  lay  in  quiet  at  his  feet,  while  Daniel — like  his  apoca- 
lyptic brother  John — lay  in  affection  on  his  breast. 

But  we  must  not  linger  thus.  After  Daniel  had  been 
taken  from  the  den,  the  anger  of  the  king  was  turned  upon 
his  persecutors,  and  he  immediately  consigned  them  to  the 
fate  which  they  had  intended  for  their  president.  As  Ha- 
man  was  hanged  on  the  gallows  which  he  had  prepared  for 
Mordecai ;  as,  according  to  the  ballad  of  Southey,  Sir  Ralph 
the  Rover,  who  cut  away  the  Inch  Cape  Bell,  perished,  with 
all  his  crew,  upon  the  Inch  Cape  Rock  ;  as,  according  to  the 
general  principle  which  the  Psalmist  announces,  the  wicked 
fall  into  the  pit  which  they  make  for  others,*  so  these  per- 
secutors were  taken  in  the  net  which  they  had  woven  for 
Daniel's  ensnarement.  It  is  the  old  story  of  "  vaulting  am- 
bition, which  o'erleaps  itself  and  falls  on  th'  other  side." 
We  do  not  vindicate  the  king  for  the  sv/ift  vengeance  which 
he  took  upon  them,  yet  we  cannot  fail  to  mark  the  illustra- 
tion which  it  furnishes  of  the  wise  man's  words,  "  Whoso  dig- 
geth  a  pit  shall  fall  therein ;  and  he  that  rolleth  a  stone,  it 
will  return  upon  him."t 

As  in  the  case  of  Nebuchadnezzar  with  the  three  young 
Hebrews,  so  now  again,  in  that  of  Darius  with  Daniel,  this 
wonderful  deliverance  was  followed  by  a  decree  in  which 
the  heathen  monarch  bears  testimony  to  Jehovah's  great- 
ness, and  calls  on  all  men  to  tremble  and  fear  before  the 
Lord.     But  it  does  not  appear  that  any  great  change  was 

*  Psa.  vii.,  15, 16;  ix.,  15,  i6.  t  Prov.  xxvi.,  27. 


ii8  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

wrought  by  it  on  Darius  himself.  He  probably  imagined 
that  he  had  done  his  part  when  he  had  published  his  de- 
cree, even  as  many  among  ourselves  content  themselves 
with  words  when  deeds  would  be  more  appropriate.  But 
it  is  so  easy  for  one  to  compound  with  his  conscience  for 
his  own  sins  by  enforcing  duty  upon  others,  that  we  can 
well  understand  his  procedure ;  and  it  is  so  common  with- 
al that  none  of  us  can  condemn  Darius  for  it  without  pro- 
nouncing sentence  also  on  himself. 

I  have  to-night  endeavored  to  give  a  practical  tone  to 
my  discourse  throughout,  and  so  there  is  the  less  need  for 
lengthened  remarks  by  v/ay  of  application.  Let  the  follow- 
ing hints  suffice. 

We  may  learn,  in  the  first  place,  that  we  must  not  expect 
to  escape  accusation  in  the  world.  No  matter  how  care- 
fully we  order  our  lives,  slander  will  have  something  to  say 
against  us.  The  only  perfect  character  the  world  has  ever 
seen  was  defamed  as  that  of  a  political  traitor  and  a  pro- 
fane blasphemer,  and  it  is  sufficient  for  the  servant  that  he 
be  as  his  Lord.  Has  he  not  prepared  us  for  such  a  contin- 
gency by  his  own  words,  "Woe  unto  you  when  all  men  shall 
speak  well  of  you  ?"  and  does  not  his  own  history  and  that 
of  his  followers  make  it  evident  that  the  nobler  the  lives  we 
live,  the  more  venomous  and  virulent  will  be  the  abuse  that 
is  heaped  upon  our  heads  ?  The  loftiest  mountains  are 
most  frequently  struck  by  the  thunder  -  bolt ;  the  tallest 
pines  feel  most  the  fury  of  the  blast ;  and  so,  as  a  general 
rule,  the  men  who  are  most  eminent  for  usefulness  and  ex- 
cellence in  the  Church  are  those  around  whom  the  nets  of 
accusation  are  most  cunningly  woven. 

Yet  let  us  not  rush  too  rashly  to  the  conclusion  that  ac- 
cusation is  an  endorsement  of  excellence.  If  the  occasion 
of  it  have  been  furnished  by  us,  as  it  was  by  Daniel,  in  our 
devotion  to  the  law  of  our  God,  then  we  may  value  the  op- 


Daniel  in  the  Den.  119 

position  of  our  antagonists  as  much  as  we  do  the  confidence 
of  our  friends.  But  if,  by  our  own  folly  and  infatuation, 
we  have  given  ground  for  the  suspicions  that  are  whispered 
concerning  us  ;  if  by  the  companionships  which  we  have 
been  cherishing,  and  the  habits  which  we  have  been  prac- 
tising, we  have  given  color  to  the  charges  which  are  brought 
against  us — then  we  may  not  shelter  ourselves  under  the 
Master's  words,  or  console  ourselves  with  the  thought  that 
we  are  only  inheriting  the  good  man's  lot..  Nay,  in  such  a 
case,  if  we  are  martyrs  at  all,  we  are  so  only  to  our  own  folly. 
That  is  a  part  of  the  whirlwind  which  they  must  reap  who 
persist,  in  the  face  of  all  expostulation,  in  sowing  the  wind. 

Let  us  see  to  it,  therefore,  that  when  men  do  speak 
against  us,  it  shall  be  for  some  good  that  is  in  us,  and  not 
for  evil  that  we  have  done  ;  for  our  sincere  and  steadfast 
adherence  to  the  morality  of  the  Gospel,  and  not  for  incon- 
sistencies of  which  we  have  been  guilty ;  for  something 
"concerning  the  law  of  our  God,"  and  not  concerning  our 
conduct  with  our  fellow-men  ;  and  then,  whatever  may  come 
upon  us,  we  may  be  sure  that  God  will,  ere  long,  bring  forth 
"our  righteousness  as  the  light,  and  our  judgment  as  the 
noonday."  "  Who  is  he  that  will  harm  you,  if  ye  be  follow- 
ers of  that  which  is  good  ?  But  and  if  ye  suffer  for  right- 
eousness' sake,  happy  are  ye ;  and  be  not  afraid  of  their 
terror,  neither  be  ye  troubled.  But  sanctify  the  Lord  God 
in  your  hearts  ;  and  be  ready  always  to  give  an  answer  to 
every  man  that  asketh  you  a  reason  of  the  hope  that  is  in 
you,  with  meekness  and  fear :  having  a  good  conscience  ; 
that,  whereas  they  speak  evil  of  you,  as  of  evil-doers,  they 
may  be  ashamed  that  falsely  accuse  your  good  conversation 
in  Christ.  For  it  is  better,  if  the  will  of  God  be  so  [that  is, 
if  ye  are  to  suffer  at  all],  that  you  suffer  for  v/ell-doing  than 
for  evil-doing."* 

*  I  Peter  iii.,  13-17. 


I20  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

We  may  learn,  in  the  second  place,  that  when  we  must 
either  siii  or  suffer,  we  ought,  without  hesitation,  to  prefer 
the  suffering.  There  was  no  shadow  of  indecision  about 
Daniel  here.  He  took  no  time  to  deliberate.  He  consult- 
ed not  with  flesh  and  blood.  He  "  held  no  parley  with  un- 
manly fears."  He  met  the  edict  of  the  king  with  a  refusal 
as  immediate  as  it  was  dignified  and  firm.  He  did  not  go 
about  complaining  to  this  one  and  that  one  on  the  subject." 
He  said  little,  but  he  did  the  more.  So  ought  we  to  meet 
all  temptations  to  sin,  even  though,  as  in  this  case,  they 
threaten  us  with  death  if  we  refuse  to  yield.  True,  we  are 
not  likely,  in  this  land  or  in  this  age,  to  meet  this  danger  in 
the  form  in  which  it  was  here  encountered  by  Daniel.  But 
though  religious  intolerance  is  at  least  dormant,  if  not  dead, 
among  us,  we  must  not  suppose  that  the  alternative  of  suf- 
fering or  sin  is  never  now  presented  to  the  soul.  The  mer- 
chant who  prefers  honest  poverty  to  dishonorable  gain ;  the 
workman  who  braves  the  tyranny  of  his  class  rather  than 
do  wrong  to  his  employer ;  the  capitalist  who  endures  the 
ostracism  of  his  caste  rather  than  treat  his  workmen  with 
heartless  selfishness  ;  the  orphan  girl  who  prefers"  a  life  of 
hardship  and  ill-requited  industry,  with  honor  and  the  ap- 
probation of  the  Lord,  to  one  of  finery  and  ease,  with  dis- 
honor and  the  loss  of  self-respect ;  the  youth  who  gives  up 
his  situation  rather  than  go  against  his  conscience — all  have 
had  the  same  alternative  set  before  them  that  was  faced  by 
Daniel  on  this  memorable  occasion.  And  there  is  scarcely 
a  day  that  some  similar  question  has  not  to  be  settled  by 
each  of  us  in  this  assembly. 

Now,  the  easiest  way  to  meet  such  an  emergency  is  to 
decide  at  once,  and  with  firmness,  for  the  right.  Delibera- 
tion is  dangerous.  The  only  safety  is  in  immediate  action. 
Where  conscience  is  concerned,  second  thoughts  are  ensnar- 
ing ]  and  if  3-ou  would  keep  yourself  from  sin,  you  must  car- 


Daniel  in  the  Den,  121 

ry  out  at  once  the  decision  which  you  feel  to  be  the  right 
one.  Say  "  No  !"  to  the  tempter  who  seeks  so  cunningly  to 
make  your  temporal  interest  his  ally,  as  he  is  attacking  your 
spiritual  welfare.  Say  it  as  if  you  meant  it ;  not  with  levity 
and  banter,  as  if  j^ou  were  indulging  in  a  joke,  but  grandly, 
solemnly,  sublimely,  as  one  who  knows  that  the  destiny  of 
his  eternity  is  hanging  on  its  utterance.  Say  it  like  Joseph 
when  he  asked,  "  How  can  I  do  this  great  wickedness,  and 
sin  against  God?"  Say  it  like  Moses  when  "he  esteemed 
the  reproach  of  Christ  greater  riches  than  all  the  treasures 
of  Egypt."  Say  it  like  Nehemiah,  when  he  made  reply  to 
Sanballat,  "  I  am  doing  a  great  work,  so  that  I  cannot  come 
down  :  why  should  the  work  cease,  whilst  I  leave  it,  and 
come  down  to  you  ?"  A  little  word  it  is,  yet  everything  de- 
pends on  your  saying  it  in  the  right  way  and  at  the  right 
time  ;  and  those  have  been  the  heroes  of  human  history  who 
have  said  it  most  emphatically  even  in  the  face  of  the  dun- 
geon and  the  stake.  But  you  cannot  say  it  thus  without 
confidence  in  God.  The  root  of  courage  is  in  faith  ;  and 
when  we  shall  possess  that  clear-eyed  vision  of  the  invisible 
One  which  sustained  Moses  in  his  work  and  Daniel  in  his 
danger,  we  shall  be  at  no  loss  as  to  the  decision  we  shall 
make  between  sin  and  suffering.  We  shall  say,  "  It  is  not 
necessary  for  me  to  be  free  from  pain,  but  it  is  necessary 
for  me  to  keep  myself  pure ;  it  is  not  necessary  for  me  to 
live  any  longer  on  the  earth,  but  while  I  live  it  is  necessary 
that  I  do  right :  here  I  stand,  God  help  me,  Amen  !"  And 
though  the  world  may  never  hear  of  it,  that  is  heroism  as 
truly  as  Daniel's  defiance  of  the  edict  of  Darius,  or  Luther's 
appearance  before  the  Diet  of  Worms. 

Finally,  we  may  learn  that  no  human  power  can  keep  us 
from  prayer.  Darius  might  make  a  decree  that  no  one 
throughout  his  empire  was  to  ask  a  petition  of  any  god  for 
thirty  days,  but  how  was  he  to  enforce  it  ?     For  prayer  is 

6 


122  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

the  utterance  of  the  heart  to  God,  and  it  is  as  natural  to  the 
soul  as  its  cry  is  to  the  infant.  You  may  prevent  the  man 
from  going  to  the  sanctuary ;  you  may  even  so  muzzle  him 
that  he  cannot  articulate  a  syllable ;  but  when  you  have 
done  all  that,  you  have  not  made  it  impossible  for  him  to 
pray ;  for  in  his  secret  soul  is  his  true  closet,  and  to  that  he 
can  retire  in  spite  of  all  your  prohibitions.  You  may  cast 
him  into  a  dungeon,  and  load  his  limbs  with  chains,  and 
keep  him  from  all  manner  of  communication  with  his  fel- 
low -  men ;  but  you  cannot,  oh  !  you  cannot,  prevent  him 
from  speaking  within  his  soul  to  God.  And,  what  is  more, 
and  better  still,  you  cannot  keep  God  from  coming  to  him. 
The  door  has  never  yet  been  forged,  the  dungeon  has  never 
yet  been  constructed,  that  can  exclude  Jehovah  from  his 
suffering  ones.  He  found  an  entrance  to  Joseph  in  the 
prison  to  which  Potiphar  had  consigned  him ;  to  Peter  in 
the  dungeon  wherein  Herod  was  so  jealously  guarding  him  ; 
and  to  Paul  and  Silas,  in  the  inmost  cell  into  which  they 
had  been  thrust.  "  I  can  pray,  and  that  is  a  great  thing," 
said  a  dying  minister  to  his  friend.  Yes,  it  is  a  great  thing, 
the  highest  of  all  our  privileges  as  followers  of  Jesus  ;  and 
of  that  no  human  power  can  deprive  us  !  Blessed  be  God 
for  this  good  thing  which  cannot  be  taken  from  us  !  Let  us 
prize  it  highly,  and  prove  it  thoroughly  in  our  times  of  pros- 
perity and  peace,  and  when  trial  and  adversity  come  we 
shall  be  the  better  able  to  appreciate  its  value. 


VIII. 

THE    VISION  OF  THE  FOUR  BEASTS. 

Daniel  vii.,  1-2S. 

WITH  the  seventh  chapter  a  new  and  entirely  distinct 
section  of  the  Book  of  Daniel  begins.  Up  till  this 
point,  we  have  a  series  of  scenes  in  his  own  pei'sonal  histo- 
ry or  in  that  of  his  friends,  with  but  one  prophetic  vision,  in- 
troduced incidentally ;  and  even  that  was  not  given  primari- 
ly to  him,  but  to  Nebuchadnezzar,  while  he  was  merely  the 
agent  in  its  interpretation.  From  this  point  on  to  the  close 
of  the  book,  however,  we  have  a  series  of  predictions  under 
the  representation  of  visions,  with  only  such  appended  per- 
sonal incidents  as  are  needed  to  mark  the  dates  at  which 
the  prophecies  were  given,  or  the  circumstances  under  which 
tliey  were  communicated. 

This  is  the  portion  of  the  book  which  has  evoked  most  of 
the  antagonism  of  rationalistic  interpreters,  and  with  good 
reason,  at  least  from  their  stand-point ;  for  if  the  genuine- 
ness of  these  chapters  be  admitted,  then  the  fulfilment  of 
them  in  after -historical  events  is,  in  the  case  of  many  of 
them,  so  abundantly  evident  that  we  must  exclaim,  "This 
is  the  revelation  of  God."  I  am  aware  of  the  delicacy  and 
difficulty  of  the  work  of  interpreting  prophecy,  especially 
when  any  part  of  it  is  as  yet  unfulfilled ;  nevertheless,  the 
fact  that  so  many  of  these  predictions  have  been  already 
verified  seems  to  demand  that  some  account  should  be  given 
of  them,  while,  without  any  dogmatism  or  any  attempt  to 
prophesy  on  our  own  account,  v/e  may  describe  the  views 


124  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

which  are  held  by  different  classes  of  expositors  concerning 
those  sections  of  them  which  are  as  yet  waiting  their  accom- 
plishment. For  myself,  I  may  say  that  I  have  never  had  so 
deeply  impressed  upon  me  the  truth  of  the  divine  origin  of 
Holy  Scripture  as  when  I  was  studying  these  chapters  ;  and 
if  I  can  succeed  in  communicating,  by  the  help  of  God's 
Spirit,  that  impression  to  you,  my  labor  will  be  abundantly 
rewarded.  Let  us  go  forward,  therefore,  confidently,  but  at 
the  same  time  cautiously ;  and  when  we  approach  the  con- 
fines of  the  unfulfilled,  let  us  pause  and  wait,  that  God  in 
history  may  interpret  God  in  prophecy. 

The  vision  in  this  seventh  chapter  is  commonly,  and  I 
think  correctly,  regarded  as  referring  to  the  same  general 
features  of  history  as  that  given  to  Nebuchadnezzar,  and 
described  in  the  second  chapter.  Between  the  two,  how- 
ever, there  is  this  notable  distinction  —  namely,  that  while 
Nebuchadnezzar  saw  the  earthly  kingdoms,  or  the  world- 
powers,  under  the  representation  of  ii  colossal  but  lifeless 
image  of  a  man,  the  prophet  has  them  portrayed  to  him  un- 
der the  representation  of  living  animals.  Now,  as  Auber- 
len,  with  true  Christian  insight,  has  said,  "  The  outward  po- 
litical history  had  been  shown  in  general  features  to  the 
worldly  ruler ;  for  by  his  position  he  was  peculiarly  and  al- 
most exclusively  fitted  to  receive  a  revelation  of  this  kind. 
But  the  prophet  obtains  more  minute  disclosures,  especially 
on  the  spiritual  and  religious  character  of  the  powers  of  the 
world,  and  such  as  were  best  adapted  to  his  position  and 
/lis  receptivity.  This  difference  of  character  in  the  revela- 
tion easily  explains  the  difference  of  images.  While  in  the 
second  chapter  they  are  taken  from  the  sphere  of  the  inani- 
mate, which  has  only  an  external  side,  they  are  chosen  in 
the  seventh  chapter  from  the  sphere  of  the  animate.  Fur- 
ther, as  Nebuchadnezzar  saw  things  only  from  without,  the 
world-power  appeared  to  him  in  its  glory  as  a  splendid  hu- 


The  Vision  of  the  Four  Beasts.  125 

man  figure,  and  the  kingdom  of  God  in  its  humility  as  a 
stone;  at  first,  he  beheld  the  world-power  more  glorious 
than  the  kingdom  of  God.  Daniel,  on  the  other  hand,  to 
whom  it  was  given  to  penetrate  further  into  the  inner  es- 
sence of  things,  saw  that  the  kingdoms  of  the  world,  notwith- 
standing their  defiant  power,  are  of  a  nature  animal,  and 
lower  than  human  ;  that  their  minds  are  estranged  from 
and  even  opposed  to  God,  and  that  only  in  the  kingdom  of 
God  is  the  true  dignity  of  humanity  revealed  ;  and,  accord- 
ingly, the  kingdom  of  God  appears  to  him  from  the  outset, 
and  in  the  very  selection  of  images,  superior  to  the  kingdom 

of  this  world The  colossal  figure  that  Nebuchadnezzar 

beheld  represents  mankind  in  its  own  strength  and  great- 
ness ;  but,  however  splendid,  it  presents  only  the  outward  ap- 
pearance of  a  man.  But  Daniel,  regarding  mankind  in  its 
spiritual  condition,  saw  humanity  through  its  alienation  from 
God  degraded  to  the  level  of  reasonless  animals,  enslaved 
by  the  dark  powers  of  nature.  It  is  only  in  the  kingdom  of 
God  that  man  gains  his  humanity  and  destiny ;  it  is  only 
from  on  high  that  the  living  perfect  Son  of  man  has  come."* 
In  the  first  year  of  Belshazzar  our  prophet  had  a  vision, 
in  which  he  saw  the  sea  raging  under  the  violence  of  a  storm, 
and  as  he  looked  there  arose  out  of  the  waters,  one  after 
another,  four  strange  composite  animals,  over  which,  as 
he  gazed,  certain  wonderful  transformations  passed.  Then, 
after  the  fourth  animal,  he  saw  the  Ancient  of  Days  clad 
in  white  raiment  and  seated  on  a  fiery  throne  ;  around  him 
were  thousands  that  ministered  unto  him,  and  ten  thousand 
times  ten  thousand  stood  before  him  ;  "  the  judgment  was 
set,  and  the  books  were  opened."  The  beast  was  slain,  and 
his  body  was  given  to  the  fire,  and  one  like  unto  "  the  Son 


*  "Daniel  and  the  Revelation,"  by  Cail  August  Auberlen ;   trans- 
lated by  Adolph  Saphir,  pp.  35,  36. 


126  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

of  man  "  came  with  the  clouds  of  heaven,  and  received  do- 
minion and  glory  and  a  kingdom,  that  all  people,  nations, 
and  languages  should  serve  him. 

The  sight  of  these  things  greatly  troubled  Daniel,  so  that 
he  made  application  to  one  of  those  that  stood  around  the 
throne  for  the  interpretation,  and  received  this  reply,  which 
lays  down  the  principles  which  every  expounder  of  the  vi- 
sion must  follow :  "  These  great  beasts,  which  are  four,  are 
four  kings,  which  shall  arise  out  of  the  earth.  But  the  saints 
of  the  Most  High  shall  take  the  kingdom,  and  possess  the 
kingdom  for  ever,  even  for  ever  and  ever." 

These  four  beasts,  then,  as  we  learn,  were  the  representa- 
tions of  four  kingdoms.  "  The  first  was  like  a  lion,  and  had 
eagle's  wings  ;"*  and  while  the  prophet  looked,  its  wings 
"were  plucked,  and  it  was  lifted  from  the  earth,  and  made 
to  stand  upon  the  feet  as  a  man,  and  a  man's  heart  was 
given  to  it."  This  is  evidently  a  symbol  of  the  Babylonian 
Empire,  which  had  the  strength  of  the  lion  combined  with 
the  swiftness  of  the  eagle.  Jeremiahf  has  in  his  prophecies 
likened  Nebuchadnezzar  to  both  of  these  animals ;  and 
Ezekiel  has  compared  the  king,$  while  Habakkuk§  and  Jer- 
emiah had  likened  his  armies,  to  the  eagle. 

The  changes  which  passed  over  this  animal  as  Daniel 
looked  upon  it  represent  the  decay  of  the  Babylonian  mon- 
archy. It  was  made  to  stand  on  the  feet  as  a  man — that  is, 
in  lieu  of  the  quickness  of  motion,  like  eagle's  wings,  there 
was  given  the  slowness  of  human  feet.  Its  rapidity  of  con- 
quest was  stopped ;  its  savage  strength  was  taken  away. 
It  Avas  weakened  and  crippled,  until  at  length,  as  we  lately 


*  It  is  hardly  necessary  to  remind  the  reader  that  the  Babylonian 
sculptures  disinterred  in  recent  years  make  us  familiar  with  such  combi- 
nations as  those  described  in  this  vision. 

t  Jer,  iv.,  7  ;  Lam.  iv.,  19.  }  Ezek.  xvii.,  3.  §  Hab.  i.,  8. 


The  Vision  of  the  Four  Beasts.  127 

saw,  in  a  single  night,  and  almost  without  striking  a  blow, 
its  capital  was  taken  by  the  Medes  and  Persians. 

The  second  beast  was  like  a  bear,  and  "  it  raised  up  itself 
on  one  side,  and  it  had  three  ribs  in  the  mouth  of  it  between 
the  teeth  of  it :  and  they  said  thus  unto  it,  Arise,  devour 
much  flesh."  This  represents  the  Medo- Persian  Empire, 
and  corresponds  to  the  breast  and  arms  of  Nebuchadnez- 
zar's image.  As  in  the  man  the  right  arm  is  stronger  than 
the  left,  so  the  bear  is -raised  up  on  one  side.  The  bear 
moves  awkwardly,  and  so,  in  contrast  with  the  winged  rapid- 
ity of  the  Chaldean  conquests,  the  Persian  advances  were 
slow  and  heavy.  The  "  three  ribs  "  in  its  mouth  correspond 
accurately  to  the  three  kingdoms  which  the  Medo-Persian 
Empire  swallowed  up,  namely,  the  Lydian,  Babylonian,  and 
Egyptian;  and  the  command  given  to  it, ''Arise,  devour 
much  flesh,"  may  indicate  that  still  other  kingdoms  were  to 
be  absorbed  by  it,  while  at  the  same  time  it  may  suggest 
that  waste  of  human  life  which  was  a  characteristic  of  the 
Persian  Empire  in  its  heavy  aggressiveness.* 

The  third  beast  was  "  like  a  leopard,"  or  panther,  "  which 
had  upon  the  back  of  it  four  wings  of  a  fowl ;  the  beast 
had  also  four  heads ;  and  dominion  was  given  to  it."  This 
is  designed  to  represent  the  Grecian  Empire ;  first,  in  its 
unity  under  Alexander  the  Great,  and,  second,  in  its  di- 
vision into  four  monarchies  under  his  four  generals.  The 
panther  is  remarkable  for  swiftness  ;  and  Alexander  was  as 
rapid  as  he  was  daring  in  his  conquests.  The  leopard  is  of 
small  size,  but  of  great  courage,  and  is  not  afraid  to  encoun- 
ter the  largest  beasts  of  the  forest ;  so  Alexander,  a  little 
king  in  comparison,  of  small  stature  too,  and  with  a  small 
army,  dared  to  attack  the  king  of  kings,  that  is,  the  mon- 


*  This  is  fully  established  by  Piisey  in  his  "Lectures  on  Daniel  the 
Prophet,"  p.  70. 


128  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

arch  of  Persia,  whose  kingdom  extended  from  the  JEgean 
Sea  to  the  Indies.  The  subdivision  of  the  empire  is  indi- 
cated by  its  four  heads ;  and  probably  also  the  number  of 
heads  may  be  a  symbol  of  circumspection  and  manifold,  ver- 
satile intelligence. 

The  fourth  beast  has  no  name  given  to  it,  but  is  described 
as  "  dreadful  and  terrible,  and  strong  exceedingly ;  and  it 
had  great  iron  teeth :  it  devoured  and  brake  in  pieces,  and 
stamped  the  residue  with  the  feet  of  it :  and  it  was  diverse 
from  all  the  beasts  that  were  before  it,  and  it  had  ten  horns  ;" 
and  while  the  prophet  considered  the  horns,  "there  came 
up  among  them  another  little  horn,  before  whom  there  were 
three  of  the  first  horns  plucked  up  by  the  roots  :  and,  be- 
hold, in  this  horn  were  eyes  like  the  eyes  of  man,  and  a  mouth 
speaking  great  things."  This  last  symbol  seems  most  to 
have  affected  the  prophet's  mind.  It  contained  in  it  more 
than  he  had  learned  from  the  explanation  of  the  "  legs  of 
iron  and  clay  "  in  Nebuchadnezzar's  image,  and  the  follow- 
ing interpretation  of  its  meaning  was,  at  his  earnest  request, 
vouchsafed  to  him  :  "  The  fourth  beast  shall  be  the  fourth 
kingdom  upon  earth,  which  shall  be  diverse  from  all  king- 
doms, and  shall  devour  the  whole  earth,  and  shall  tread  it 
down,  and  break  it  in  pieces.  And  the  ten  horns  out  of  this 
kingdom  are  ten  kings  that  shall  arise ;  and  another  shall 
rise  after  them ;  and  he  shall  be  diverse  from  the  first, 
and  he  shall  subdue  three  kings.  And  he  shall  speak  great 
words  against  the  Most  High,  and  shall  wear  out  the  saints 
of  the  Most  High,  and  think  to  change  times  and  laws  :  and 
they  shall  be  given  into  his  hand  until  a  time  and  times" 
(that  is,  two  times,  for  the  word  is  dual)  "  and  the  dividing 
of  time.  But  the  judgment  shall  sit,  and  they  shall  take 
away  his  dominion,  to  consume  and  to  destroy  it  unto  the 
end." 

Now,  concerning  this  beast  and  the  explanation  here  giv- 


The  Vision  of  the  Four  Beasts.  129 

en  of  the  changes  that  passed  upon  it,  there  has  been  much 
controversy  among  commentators.  I  shall  content  myself 
with  putting  before  you  the  principal  opinions.  Some  have 
supposed  that  this  animal  represents  the  Grecian  Empire 
after  Alexander's  death ;  that  the  ten  horns  are  ten  kings  of 
dififerent  sections  of  it ;  and  that  the  little  horn  is  Antiochus 
Epiphanes.  But  against  this  view  we  have  to  set  the  fact 
that  the  vision  here  runs  parallel  to  that  of  Nebuchadnez- 
zar's image,  which,  as  we  saw  when  we  were  considering  it, 
is  most  naturally  understood  of  the  Babylonian,  Persian, 
Grecian,  and  Roman  kingdoms. 

Again,  the  kingdom  of  the  Seleucidse  is  always  regarded 
as  a  part  of  the  great  Greek  Empire,  and  never  spoken  of 
as  being  in  itself  a  new  one.  Once  more,  in  the  leopard 
with  its  four  heads  we  have  already  had  the  Grecian  Em- 
pire as  a  v/hole,  and  it  is  not  natural  to  regard  it  as  set  be- 
fore us  in  one  of  its  sections  only  in  this  fourth  animal. 
Still  further,  in  Antiochus  Epiphanes  there  was  nothing  di- 
verse, in  kind  at  least,  from  other  kings.  His  peculiar  dis- 
tinction was  not  that  he  was  of  a  different  sort  from  others, 
but  only  that  he  was  worse  ;  and  so,  though  there  are  cer- 
tainly in  his  reign  some  marvellous  coincidences  with  the 
statements  made  regarding  this  little  horn,  we  cannot  view 
him  as  meeting  all  the  requirements  of  the  case.  For  these 
reasons,  a  large  number  of  expositors  are  in  favor  of  regard- 
ing this  animal  as  representing  the  Roman  Empire. 

But  even  among  those  who  adopt  this  general  idea  there 
are  distinct  differences.  They  may  be  divided  into  three 
classes.  The  first,  of  whom  Calvin  may  be  named  as  a 
specimen,  find  the  ten  horns  in  the  number  of  separate 
kingdoms  of  which  the  Roman  Empire  was  composed. 
They  suppose  that  the  little  horn  means  Julius  Csesar ;  and' 
the  overthrow  of  the  whole  they  discover  in  the  first  advent 
of  the  Messiah,  when  he  came  to  found  that  spiritual  king- 

6* 


130  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

dom  which  is  yet  destined  to  be  universal  and  everlasting. 
To  this  interpretation,  however,  there  are  insuperable  ob- 
jections ;  for  the  ten  horns  are  said  to  be  kings  or  king- 
doms rising  out  of  that  which  is  symbolized  by  the  beast, 
and  cannot,  therefore,  be  taken  as  meaning  the  different 
parts  of  which,  as  a  whole,  it  was  originally  composed.  As 
the  four  heads  of  the  leopard  represented  the  partition  of 
Alexander's  kingdom,  so  the  ten  horns  of  this  beast  must 
represent  a  partition  of  the  kingdom  denoted  by  the  beast. 
Again,  there  was  nothing  in  Julius  Caesar  diverse  from  other 
earthly  potentates.  No  doubt,  he  had  astuteness  and  abili- 
ty and  military  skill  in  a  larger  measure  than  almost  any 
other  general ;  but  these  were  the  same  in  kind  as  those 
possessed  by  others,  the  only  difference  being  in  degree. 
Therefore,  this  interpretation  does  not  meet  the  full  re- 
quirements of  the  case. 

The  great  preponderance  of  opinion  among  commenta- 
tors, therefore,  is  in  favor  of  what  may  be  called  the  papal 
interpretation  ;  and  without  in  any  way  indicating  my  pref- 
erence for  it,  I  shall  endeavor  to  set  it  vividly  before  you  as 
it  is  given  by  the  most  prominent  of  this  class  of  authors. 
In  the  view  of  these  writers,  then,  the  fourth  beast  repre- 
sents the  Roman  Empire.  "  It  was  so  great  and  horrible 
that  it  was  not  easy  to  find  an  adequate  name  for  it ;  and 
the  Roman  Empire  was  dreadful  and  terrible  and  strong 
exceedingly,  beyond  any  of  the  former  kingdoms.  It  was 
diverse  from  all  kingdoms,  not  only  in  its  republican  form 
of  government,  but  likewise  in  strength  and  power  and 
greatness,  and  duration  and  extent  of  dominion.  It  de- 
voured, and  brake  in  pieces,  and  stamped  the  residue  with 
the  feet  of  it ;  it  reduced  Macedonia  into  a  Roman  prov- 
ince, about  168  B.C. ;  the  kingdom  of  Pergamus,  about  133 
B.C. ;  Syria,  about  65  B.C. ;  and  Egypt,  about  30  B.C.  And 
besides  the  remains  of  the  Macedonian  Empire,  it  subdued 


The  Vision  of  the  Four  Deasts.  131 

many  other  provinces  and  kingdoms  ;  so  that  it  might,  by  a 
very  usual  figure,  be  said  to  devour  the  whole  earth,  and  to 
tread  it  down,  and  to  break  it  in  pieces,  and  become,  in  a 
manner,  what  the  Roman  writers  delighted  to  call  it,  '  terra- 
rum  orbis  iinperiiun,^  the  empire  of  the  whole  world."*  The 
ten  horns  of  the  beast  are  the  ten  kingdoms  which  consti- 
tuted, at  the  fall  of  the  Roman  Empire,  what  Bishop  New- 
ton has  called  "  the  broken  pieces,"  into  which  it  was  cut 
up,  and  which,  according  to  Machiavel,t  who  was  not  think- 
ing of  Daniel  when  he  made  the  enumeration,  were  these 
ten  :  the  Ostrogoths,  the  Visigoths,  the  Swenes  and  Alans, 
the  Vandals,  the  Franks,  the  Burgundians,  the  Heruli  and 
Turingi,  the  Saxons,  the  Huns,  and  the  Lombards.  Other 
enumerations  have  been  given  by  Mede,  by  Lloyd,  by  Sir 
Isaac  Newton,  etc. ;  and  some  have  supposed  that  the  nu- 
meral ten  stands  here  simply  as  a  definite  for  an  indefinite 
number. 

The  "  little  horn  "  spoken  of  in  verse  8th  is  regarded  by 
this  class  of  interpreters  as  the  Bishop  of  Rome  when  he 
became  a  temporal  prince.  "The  Bishop  of  Rome,"  says 
Bishop  Newton, t  ''was  respectable  as  a  bishop  long  be- 
fore ;  but  he  did  not  become  '  a  horn  '  properly,  which  is  an 
emblem  of  strength  and  power,  till  he  became  '  a  temporal 
prince.'  He  was  to  rise  after  the  others,  that  is,  behind 
them,  and,  as  Mede  explains  it,  so  that  the  kings  were  not 
aware  of  the  growing-up  of  the  little  horn  till  it  overtopped 
them."  Three  of  the  first  horns — that  is,  three  of  the  first 
kings  or  kingdoms — were  to  be  plucked  up  by  the  roots  and 
to  fall  before  it.  And  these  three,  according  to  Sir  Isaac 
Newton,  were,  first,  the  exarchate  of  Ravenna,  which  of  right 


*  "  Dissertations   on  the   Prophecies,"   by   Thomas   Newton,  D.D. 
sometime  Lord  Bishop  of  Bristol,  p.  230. 
t  Ibid.,  p.  232.  {  Ibid.,  p.  241. 


132  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

belonged  to  the  Greek  emperors,  and  was  given  to  Pope 
Stephen  11.  by  Pepin,  because  his  predecessor  had  acknowl- 
edged him,  though  a  usurper,  to  be  the  lawful  sovereign  of 
France.  This  was  effected  about  the  year  755.  Second, 
the  kingdom  of  the  Lombards,  which  was  often  troublesome 
to  the  popes,  so  that  at  the  instigation  of  one  of  the  pon- 
tiffs, Charlemagne,  successor  of  Pepin,  came  with  a  great 
army,  and  conquered  it,  and  gave  a  great  part  of  it  to  the 
Holy  See.  This  was  in  the  year  774.  Third,  the  city  and 
dukedom  of  Rome,  which  was  made  over  by  the  same  Char- 
lemagne to  Leo  in. 

Other  authors  have  given  a  slightly  different  enumeration  ; 
but  all  this  class  of  interpreters  are  careful  to  remark  that 
the  Pope  has  in  a  manner  designated  himself  as  the  per- 
son indicated  by  wearing  the  tiara,  or  triple  crown.  In  oth- 
er respects,  too,  the  Pope,  in  their  view,  fully  answers  the 
character  of  the  little  horn.  It  was  to  be  diverse  from  the 
first,  and  so  the  power  of  the  popes  is,  or  rather  was,  unlike 
that  of  other  princes,  being  ecclesiastical  as  well  as  tempo- 
ral. In  this  horn  were  "eyes  like  the  eyes  of  man,"  to  de- 
note, they  say,  cunning  and  foresight — his  looking  out  and 
watching  for  all  opportunities  to  promote  his  own  interest ; 
and  with  this  agrees  the  policy  of  the  Roman  hierarchy, 
which,  as  they  say,  has  almost  passed  into  a  proverb  for 
these  peculiarities. 

"  He  had  a  mouth,  speaking  very  great  things  ;"  and  who, 
they  ask,  hath  been  more  noisy  and  blustering  than  the 
Pope,  boasting  of  his  supremacy,  thundering  with  his  anath- 
emas, bellowing  with  his  bulls,  excommunicating  princes, 
absolving  subjects  from  their  allegiance,  and  claiming  even 
the  infallibility  of  God  ? 

"And  he  shall  speak  great  words  against  the  Most  High  ;" 
and  who,  again,  they  ask,  has  so  set  himself  up  above  all 
laws,  human  and  divine,  arrogating  to  himself  godlike  attri- 


The  Vision  of  the  Four  Beasts.  133 

butes  and  titles  of  holiness  and  infallibility,  insulting  men 
and  blaspheming  God,  as  the  Pope  has  ? 

"And  he  shall  wear  out  the  saints  of  the  Most  High;" 
that  is,  as  they  afifirm,  he  shall  waste  God's  people  by  wars, 
Inquisitions,  persecutions,  massacres,  and  the  like  ;  and  we 
must  admit  that  the  papacy  may  well  deserve  to  be  so  de- . 
scribed. 

"And  he  shall  think  to  change  times  and  laws,"  appoint- 
ing fasts  and  feasts,  canonizing  saints,  granting  pardons  for 
sin  and  indulgences  to  sin,  instituting  new  modes  of  wor- 
ship, imposing  new  articles  of  faith,  enjoining  new  rules  of 
practice,  such  as  celibacy,  and  reversing  at  pleasure  the  laws 
of  God  and  man.  No  doubt  this,  also,  may  be  said  with 
truth  of  the  papacy. 

"  And  they  shall  be  given  into  his  hands  for  a  time,  two 
times,  and  the  dividing  of  time."  A  time,  all  this  class  of 
interpreters  agree,  is  a  year.  So  a  time,  two  times,  and  half 
a  time  make  three  years  and  a  half.  Now,  taking  the 
computation  of  a  day  for  a  year,  which,  without  any  warrant, 
they  always  take,  and  reckoning  a  month  at  thirty  days,  we 
get  the  forty  and  two  months  of  Revelation  (xi.,  2),  and  the 
twelve  hundred  and  sixty  days  of  Revelation  (xi.,  3,  and 
xii.,  6).  This  kingdom  of  the  papacy,  therefore,  which  is 
temporal  and  spiritual,  is  to  last,  so  say  these  interpreters, 
for  twelve  hundred  and  sixty  years. 

Cut  much  difference  of  opinion  has  been  entertained 
among  them  as  to  the  period  from  which  the  calculation  is 
to  be  made.  Some  would  reckon  it  from  the  issuing  of  the 
edict  of  Justinian  acknowledging  the  Pope  to  be  the  head  of 
the  Church,  a.d.  533  ;  others  would  take  it  from  the  decree 
of  Phocas,  by  which  the  title  of  Justinian  was  confirmed, 
and  of  which  the  date  is  a.d.  606  ;  others  count  it  from  the 
grant  of  Pepin  of  the  kingdom  of  Lombardy,  by  which  the 
Pope  first  became  a  temporal  monarch,  the  date  of  which 


134  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

is  A.D.  752.  The  second  of  these  dates  was  that  adopted 
by  Robert  Fleming,  in  his  work  on  the  "  Rise  and  Fall  of 
the  Papacy,"  first  published  in  1701,  wherein  he  says,  "If 
we  may  suppose  that  Antichrist  began  his  reign  in  the  year 
606,  the  additional  twelve  hundred  and  sixty  years,  were  they 
Julian  or  ordinary  years,  would  lead  down  to  1866  ;  but,  see- 
ing they  are  prophetical  years  of  only  three  hundred  and 
sixty  days,  we  must  cast  away  eighteen  years,  and  thus  the 
final  period  of  the  papal  usurpation  must  conclude  in  1848." 
This  was  the  statement  that  was  so  frequently  quoted,  as 
those  of  us  then  old  enough  to  take  note  of  what  was  said 
will  remember,  in  that  memorable  year  wlien  the  Pope  was 
compelled  to  become  a  fugitive  from  Rome  ;  and  it  was  cer- 
tainly a  striking  coincidence.  Elliot,  in  his  "  Horae  Apoca- 
lypticae,"  dates  from  the  edict  of  Justinian,  529  to  533,  and 
adding  1260  to  these  we  have  1789  to  1793,  the  era  of  the 
first  French  Revolution,  when  certainly  the  papacy  received 
the  first  of  that  series  of  blows  from  which  it  is  still  reeling, 
and  from  which  it  will  probably  never  recover.  Others, 
however,  take  the  date  from  754,  and  tell  us  we  are  not  to 
expect  the  downfall  of  Antichrist  till  the  year  2014. 

I  have  given  these  different  interpretations  more  as  a 
matter  of  curiosity  than  because  I  am  willing  to  endorse 
any  one  of  them.  For  such  investigations  as  these,  I  con- 
fess I  have  little  taste,  and  though  many  singular  coinci- 
dences have  occurred,  I  own  that  I  shrink  from  descending 
to  such  particulars,  and  perilling  the  argument  which  may 
be  drawn  from  the  prophecy  as  a  whole  on  the  accuracy  of 
a  single  date. 

But  we  must  hasten  on.  This  kingdom  and  the  little  horn 
rising  out  of  it  are  to  be  destroyed  at  length  by  the  power 
of  the  Son  of  man,  a  name  which  here  we  meet  in  prophecy 
for  the  first  time.  Heaven  is  opened  to  us  as  to  the  proph- 
et.     We  see  the  throne,  and  the  Ancient  of  Davs  seated 


The  Vision  of  the  Four  Beasts.  135 

thereon.  The  judgment  is  set,  and  the  books  are  opened  ; 
and  one  like  unto  the  Son  of  man  is  there,  Hke  man,  but 
not  a  mere  man ;  man,  but  more  than  man ;  and  to  him 
is  given  power,  and  glory,  and  kingdom,  that  all  peoples 
should  serve  him,  and  his  dominion  is  to  last  forever.  We 
know  this  Son  of  man  ;  and  we  know,  too,  that  as  in  the 
case  of  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  his  coming,  here  fore- 
told, is  not  that  of  a  personal  presence,  but  rather  of  a 
providential  judgment  and  a  great  ingathering  of  souls  to 
himself. 

The  whole  description  of  verses  13  and  14  is  but,  as  it 
were,  a  dramatizing  of  the  words  of  the  Second  Psalm : 
"  Ask  of  me,  and  I  shall  give  thee  the  heathen  for  thine  in- 
heritance, and  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  earth  for  thy  pos- 
session." And  so  the  end  shall  come  :  might  is  not  always 
to  prevail,  truth  is  yet  to  come  uppermost.  The  flock  of 
Christ  is  not  always  to  be  feeble  and  small,  but  the  earth 
shall  be  filled  with  his  knowledge  as  the  waters  cover  the 
sea.  "  He  shall  reign  till  all  his  enemies  are  put  under 
him."  His  name  is  "King  of  kings  and  Lord  of  lords,"  and 
the  day  is  coming  when  the  shout  shall  be  heard  on  high, 
"  Hallelujah  !  the  kingdoms  of  the  world  are  become  the 
kingdoms  of  our  Lord  and  of  his  Christ."  As  surely  as  the 
truth  of  this  vision  in  regard  to  the  three  first  kingdoms  has 
been  demonstrated,  so  surely  shall  it  be  made  manifest  by 
the  destruction  of  the  fourth,  with  its  little  horn,  of  vanity, 
and  blasphemy,  and  cruelty,  and  in  the  setting-up  of  a 
great,  spiritual,  universal,  and  eternal  kingdom,  with  Jesus 
sitting  supreme  on  the  throne  of  loving  and  loyal  human 
hearts. 

But  now,  leaving  the  subject  of  the  interpretation  of  this 
remarkable  prophecy,  let  us  attempt  to  get  at  the  practical 
and  permanent  principles  which  underlie  it,  and  which  are 
at  once  profoundly  suggestive  and  exceedingly  important. 


136  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

Foremost  among  these,  we  find  the  terribly  significant 
truth  that  earthly  power  in  and  of  itself  degenerates  into 
brutality.  The  appropriate  symbol  of  a  great  empire  is  a 
wild  beast.  From  the  day  when  Nimrod  founded  Babel  on 
till  that  when  the  latest  empire  that  has  been  added  to  the 
list  of  the  world's  monarchies  was  consummated,  the  king- 
doms of  the  earth  have  stood  on  military  conquest.  Might 
has  taken  the  place  of  right.  The  weakest  has  been  driven 
to  the  wall,  and  the  cruelties  which  have  been  practised  on 
the  battle-field  and  in  connection  with  victory  have  given 
the  fullest  illustration  of  the  poet's  words,  "  Man's  inhuman- 
ity to  man  makes  countless  thousands  mourn."  The  sword 
has  been  the  arbiter  of  imperial  dynasties,  and  the  struggles 
between  rival  powers  have  been  as  fierce  and  destructive  as 
the  contentions  of  wild  animals  in  the  jungle.  Nay,  even 
in  our  own  century,  the  age  of  peace  societies,  and  interna- 
tional conferences,  and  exhibitions  of  the  products  of  indus- 
try to  which  the  civilized  world  has  been  asked  to  contribute, 
we  have  seen  again  and  again  that  resort  has  been  had  to 
war  for  the  settlement  of  differences  between  neighboring 
states.  We  all  exclaim  against  the  brutality  of  the  prize- 
fight, wherein  two  men  consent  to  beat  each  other  into 
bruised  and  bleeding  flesh  for  the  paltry  consideration  of  a 
sum  of  money  or  the  empty  honor  of  a  championship.  But 
what  better  is  it  when  armies  seek  to  annihilate  each  other 
for  the  sake  of  an  addition  to  national  territory,  or  for  the 
vindication  of  what  is  called  national  honor  ?  The  rifle  may 
be  a  more  scientific  weapon  than  the  fist,  but  they  are  both 
the  instruments  of  violence ;  and  it  is  a  libel  on  the  intelli- 
gence of  our  humanity,  not  to  say  also  on  the  Christianity 
of  our  age,  to  say  that  no  other  means  can  be  devised  for 
the  settlement  of  the  disputes  or  the  removal  of  the  jeal- 
ousies that  may  spring  up  between  different  nations. 

The  Washington  treaty  is  a  new  thing  in  international 


■  The  Vision  of  the  Four  Beasts.  137 

politics,  and  it  is  not  by  accident  that  this  has  been  carried 
through  by  the  two  most  thoroughly  Christianized  nations 
on  the  earth.  Nor  ought  it  to  be  forgotten  in  this  connec- 
tion that  the  English  Cabinet  under  whose  auspices,  on  the 
one  side  at  least,  that  arbitration  was  agreed  on  and  con- 
ducted, had  in  it  more  men  of  earnest  personal  Christian 
convictions  than  any  government  which  Great  Britain  has 
seen  in  its  history.  When  I  repeat  the  names  of  Gladstone, 
Bright,  Hatherley,  Argyll,  it  will  be  at  once  recognized  that 
they  are  those  of  men  who  stand  in  the  fore-front  of  relig- 
ious thinkers,  as  well  as  in  the  vanguard  of  a  political 
party ;  and  when  I  affirm,  as  I  do  on  the  fullest  evidence, 
that  no  man's  words  on  this  side  of  the  Atlantic  were  so  in- 
fluential in  regard  to  the  inauguration  of  the  same  treaty 
as  those  of  the  venerable  Christian  scholar  and  philosopher 
Theodore  Woolsey,  you  will  recognize  how  much  of  the  un- 
worldly element  there  was  in  it  all.  But  that,  unhappily,  is 
still  an  exceptional  case ;  and  the  war  between  France  and 
Germany  a  few  years  ago,  as  well  as  that  between  Russia 
and  Turkey  to-day,  is  a  conclusive  proof  that  among  the 
world-powers  might  is  still  supreme,  while  the  barbarities 
which  have  been  reported  in  the  latter  instance  with,  I  fear, 
too  much  truth,  on  both  sides,  attest  that  the  symbolism  of 
Daniel  is  as  appropriate  now  as  it  was  in  the  time  of  Bel- 
shazzar.  Alas  !  who  can  think  of  all  this  without  joining 
the  recluse  of  Olney  in  his  lament,  as  through  the  "loop- 
hole "  of  his  retreat  he  sighs, 

"  Oh  for  a  lodge  in  some  vast  wilderness, 
Some  boundless  contiguity  of  shade. 
Where  rumor  of  oppression  and  deceit, 
Of  unsuccessful  or  successful  war, 
Might  never  reach  nie  more  !     My  ear  is  pain'd, 
My  soul  is  sick  with  every  day's  report 
Of  wrong  and  outrage  with  which  earth  is  fill'd  : 


138  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

There  is  no  flesh  in  man's  obdurate  heart ; 
It  does  not  bleed  for  man  ;  the  natural  bond 
Of  brotherhood  is  sever'd  as  the  flax 
That  falls  asunder  at  the  touch  of  fire."* 

But  observe,  again,  that  the  tendency  of  this  brutality  is 
to  increase.  The  four  beasts  that  Daniel  saw  came  in  this 
order :  first  the  lion,  then  the  bear,  then  the  panther,  then 
that  huge  composite,  unnamed,  almost  unnamable,  animal, 
with  "great  iron  teeth,  devouring  and  breaking  in  pieces, 
and  stamping  the  residue  with  the  feet  of  it."  We  have 
heard  a  great  deal  lately  of  theories  of  development,  and 
this  is  neither  the  place  nor  the  time  to  enter  upon  the 
consideration  of  these  so  far  as  they  seek  to  explain  the 
physical  vuiiverse ;  but,  morally,  the  only  development  of 
man,  when  left  to  himself,  which  history  has  seen,  has  been 
downward.  Bad  as  the  Babylonians  were,  they  were  out- 
done by  the  Persians ;  and  these  were  exceeded  by  the 
Greeks  ;  while  the  Romans  were  worst  of  all. 

Let  it  be  noted,  also,  that  all  this  while  the  nations  were 
growing  in  what  has  been  called  culture  and  civilization. 
The  art  and  poetry  and  philosophy  of  Greece  have  never 
been  excelled ;  and  Rome  was  the  heir  of  the  highest  civ- 
ilization that  had  gone  before  it.  But,  after  all,  that  was 
merely  a  superficial  thing,  and  served  only  very  thinly  to 
veneer  the  rottenness  and  cruelty  which  were  beneath. 
You  may  suspect  my  testimony ;  but  if  you  accept  that  of 
Mr.  Lecky,  in  his  "  History  of  Morals,"  he  will  tell  you  that 
Greece  was  a  mass  of  reeking  corruption ;  and  Mr.  An- 
thony Trollope  has  given  us  a  most  harrowing  description 
of  Roman  cruelty,  which,  from  its  bearing  on  the  very  point 
before  us,  I  must  take  the  liberty  of  quoting.  He  says, 
"That  which  will  most  strike  the  ordinary  English  reader 

*  Cowper's  "Task,"  Book  II. 


The  Vision  of  the  Four  Beasts.  139 

in  the  narrative  of  Ccesar  is  the  cruelty  of  the  Romans  — 
cruelty  of  which  Ccesar  himself  is  guilty  to  a  frightful  ex- 
tent, and  of  which  he  never  expresses  horror.  And  yet 
among  his  contemporaries  he  achieved  a  character  for  clem- 
ency which  he  has  retained  to  this  day.  In  describing  the 
character  of  Caesar  without  reference  to  that  of  his  contem- 
poraries, it  is  impossible  not  to  declare  him  to  have  been 
terribly  cruel.  From  blood-thirstiness  he  slaughtered  none, 
but  neither  from  tenderness  did  he  spare  any.  All  was  done 
from  policy ;  and  when  policy  seemed  to  demand  blood  he  could 
without  a  scruple — as  far  as  we  can  judge,  without  a  pang — 
order  the  destruction  of  hujtian  beings,  having  no  regard  to  7ium- 
ber,  sex,  age,  innoce?ice,  or  hclplessjiess.  Our  only  excuse  for 
him  is  that  he  was  a  Roman,  and  that  Romans  were  indif- 
ferent to  blood.  Suicide  was  with  them  the  common  mode 
of  avoiding  otherwise  inevitable  misfortune ;  and  it  was  nat- 
ural that  men  who  made  light  of  their  own  lives  should 
make  light  of  the  lives  of  others.  Of  all  those  with  whose 
names  the  reader  will  become  acquainted  in  the  following 
pages  "  ("  The  Commentaries  of  Caesar  "),  "  hardly  one  or  two 
died  in  their  beds."  Then,  having  amply  proved  that  state- 
ment, he  goes  on  to  say,  "  The  bloody  catalogue  is  so  com- 
plete, so  nearly  comprises  all  whose  names  are  mentioned, 
that  it  strikes  the  reader  with  almost  a  comic  horror.  But 
when  we  come  to  the  slaughter  of  whole  towns  ;  to  the  devas- 
tation of  country  effected  purposely  that  men  and  zvomen  might 
starve ;  to  the  abando7imcnt  of  the  old,  the  young,  and  the  ten- 
der, that  they  might  perish  on  the  hill-sides ;  to  the  mutilatio7i 
of  crowds  of  men  ;  to  the  burtting  of  cities  told  us  in  a  passing 
word;  to  the  drowning  of  many  thousands — mentioned  as  we 
should  mention  the  destruction  of  a  brood  of  rats — the  comedy 
is  all  over,  and  the  heart  becomes  sick.  Then  it  is  we  re- 
member that  the  coming  of  Christ  has  changed  all  things, 
and  that  men  now — though  terrible  things  have  been  done 


140  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

since  Christ  came  to  us — are  not  as  men  were  in  the  days 
of  Cffisar."*  Nothing  needs  to  be  added  to  this  statement 
in  order  to  prove  the  brutality  of  the  power  symbolized  by 
this  fourth  beast,  save  to  say  that  the  history  of  the  devel- 
opment of  the  Empire  in  later  days,  as  traced  by  Gibbon, 
contains  the  record  of  even  greater  enormities,  if  that  be 
possible,  than  those  of  which  Caesar  was  guilty. 

But  if  this  be  so,  then  we  are  prepared  for  the  third  les- 
son suggested  by  this  prophecy  —  namely,  that  the  restora- 
tion of  man  to  humanity  must  come,  not  from  himself,  but 
from  above.  He  who  introduced  the  healing  salt  which  is 
yet  to  purify  thoroughly  the  bitter  fountain  of  our  earthly 
life  was  sent  forth  from  "  the  Ancient  of  Days."  He  came 
from  heaven  to  earth,  that  he  might  elevate  earth  at  length 
to  heaven.  He,  the  "Son  of  God,"  became  the  "Son  of 
man,"  that  he  might  make  us  sons  of  God.  Had  he  been  a 
man  and  no  more,  he  could  not  have  arrested  the  downward 
moral  development  that  was  in  progress.  But  because  he 
was  God  incarnate,  because  he  came  from  above,  he  is  able 
to  introduce  an  antidote  to  the  corruption  of  our  human 
nature. 

There  are  few  more  striking  arguments  for  the  divine 
origin  of  the  Gospel,  and  the  deity  of  its  author,  than  that 
which  may  be  drawn  from  the  contrast  between  the  charac- 
ter of  Jesus  and  that  of  his  age.  Recall  the  w^ords  of  Trol- 
lope  which  I  have  just  quoted,  or  lift  such  a  work,  for  exam- 
ple, as  Forsyth's  "  Life  of  Cicero,"  and  see  what  a  sink  of 
iniquity  and  corruption  Rome  had  become  only  a  few  years 
before  the  birth  of  Christ.  Peruse  the  writings  of  Josephus, 
and  mark  how  he  describes  in  blackest  characters  the  im- 


*  "The  Commentaries  of  Caesar,"  by  Anthony  Trollope,  in  the  "Se- 
ries of  Ancient  Classics  for  English  Readers,"  pp.  24-27.  The  italics  are 
our  own. 


The  Vision  of  the  Four  Beasts.  141 

morality  of  the  Jewish  people  in  the  days  of  Herod  the 
Great.  Then  take  the  four  Gospels  and  read  them,  and 
you  will  perceive  that  the  difference  between  them  is  not 
one  of  degree,  but  of  nature.  By  what  process  of  "  evolu- 
tion "  could  Jesus  Christ  have  been  produced  out  of  such  an 
age  ?  Consider  the  attributes  of  character  by  which  he  was 
distinguished.  His  meekness  and  humility  were  equalled 
only  by  his  honesty  and  benevolence.  There  was  about 
him  a  conscientious  thoroughness,  which  was  carried  out  at 
every  sacrifice  ;  and  so  far  from  having  that  love  of  ostenta- 
tion which  might  have  been  expected  in  a  deceiver,  there 
was  in  him  a  disposition  rather  to  check  the  impulsive  ardor 
of  those  who  wished  to  blaze  abroad  the  glory  of  his  power. 
His  Sermon  on  the  Mount  evinces  that,  beyond  all  other 
things  in  religion,  he  delighted  in  truth  in  the  inward  parts, 
and  held  in  abhorrence  that  cold  and  hollow  ritualism  which 
is  content  with  "the  form  of  godliness,"  while  "denying  its 
power."  Never  was  there  such  an  equipoise  of  moral  attri- 
butes as  we  find  in  him.  To  an  all-embracing  love  he  join- 
ed a  sternness  of  principle  which  exposed  wrong  wherever 
he  found  it,  and  insisted  on  faithfulness  even  in  that  which 
is  least.  With  the  humility  of  a  child,  there  was  combined 
in  him  the  sublime  self-consciousness  of  one  who  "  thought 
it  not  robbery  to  be  equal  with  God ;"  and  with  the  tender- 
ness of  a  woman  there  was  associated  the  courage  of  a  hero. 
But  most  of  all,  pervading  his  other  qualities,  and  shedding 
its  own  bright  halo  round  them  all,  was  his  self-sacrificing 
and  devoted  love.  Before  the  portrait  which  these  evan- 
gelists have  painted,  men  of  every  age  have  stood  in  rooted 
admiration ;  and  the  influence  of  his  life  and  death  and 
teachings  has  put  the  benevolence  into  our  modern  life. 
If  it  has  not  yet  succeeded  in  destroying  war,  it  has  sent  its 
ministers  of  mercy  to  the  battle-field,  to  care  for  the  wound- 
ed and  soothe  the  dying ;  and  by-and-by,  under  the  teaching 


142  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

of  his  Spirit,  men  shall  "beat  their  swords  into  ploughshares, 
and  their  spears  into  pruning-hooks." 

Now,  do  not  tell  me  that  such  a  character  was  the  natu- 
ral outgrowth  of  his  times.  Take  Rome  before  the  Advent, 
with  Cicero  as  a  representative  of  its  philosophy  and  states- 
manship, Horace  as  the  popular  idol  among  its  poets,  and 
Anthony  as  a  specimen  of  its  morals  ;  take  the  philosophy 
of  Greece,  with  its  different  sects  of  Stoics,  Epicureans, 
Platonists,  and  the  like  ;  take  Judaism,  whether  as  seen  at 
Alexandria  among  the  disciples  of  Philo,  or  in  Judea  among 
the  formal  Pharisees,  the  sceptical  Sadducees,  or  the  ascetic 
Essenes.  Put  all  these  into  the  crucible  of  such  an  age  as 
that  undeniably  was,  and  by  what  amalgam  known  to  men 
could  these  elements  have  produced  Jesus  Christ  ?  Christ 
the  outgrowth  of  his  age  ?  No !  The  legitimate  child  of 
such  an  age  was  the  dilettante  litterateur,  the  amateur  musi- 
cian, the  fashionable  charioteer,  the  inhuman  monster,  Nero ! 
But,  so  far  from  being  a  development  of  his  generation,  Je- 
sus was  crucified  by  his  generation  for  being  what  he  was ; 
and  the  inscription  over  his  cross,  written  as  it  was  in  let- 
ters of  Greek  and  Latin  and  Hebrew,  may  fitly  symbolize  the 
agreement  of  all  the  three  nationalities  in  putting  him  to 
death.  He  was  no  development  of  his  age,  but,  instead, 
everything  true  and  noble  and  loving  and  godlike  in  suc- 
ceeding generations  has  been  a  development  of  him ;  and 
when  men,  standing  around  his  cross,  shall  learn  to  combine 
in  their  lives  obedience  to  the  precepts  of  his  Sermon  on 
the  Mount  with  the  reception  of  the  principle  that  pervades 
his  parable  of  the  Good  Samaritan,  then  will  be  the  return 
of  that  golden  age  to  w^hich  the  poets  of  antiquity  looked  so 
wistfully  back,  and  the  beginning  of  that  millennium  which 
Christians  are  so  prayerfully  expecting. 

Thus,  then,  the  hope  of  the  world  lies  in  the  diffusion  of 
the  Gospel  of  Christ,  and  to  us,  in  this  age  and  in  this  land, 


The  Vision  of  the  Four  Beasts.  143 

the  high  privilege  has  been  given  of  laboring  in  this  holy 
and  benevolent  enterprise.  The  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus  is 
the  great  purifier  and  elevator  of  human  society.  Civiliza- 
tion without  the  Gospel  is,  as  we  have  seen,  only  a  veneered 
brutality.  But  wherever  the  Gospel  goes  in  power,  it  re- 
stores men  to  humanity  by  bringing  them  back  to  God. 
Man  was  made  in  the  image  of  his  Creator,  and  so  the 
purest  godlikeness  will  ever  be  the  truest  humanity.  But 
to  have  godlikeness  we  must  have  God's  Son  dwelling  in 
us  ;  and  when  we  have  attained  that  blessing,  we  shall  not 
seek  to  keep  it  to  ourselves,  but  shall  work,  and  pray,  and 
give,  that  others  may  share  it  with  us.  To  this  bloodless 
crusade  let  me  summon  you  now ;  for  when  the  Church  of 
Christ  shall  go  forth  in  earnest  as  a  missionary  of  love  to 
the  nations,  she  will  be  the  most  effective  Peace  Society ; 
and,  in  the  proportion  in  which  men  embrace  the  principles 
of  the  Saviour,  cruelty  will  disappear  from  the  earth.  Let 
us  give  ourselves,  beloved  brethren,  to  this  holy  enterprise, 
and  we  shall  thus  help  on  the  coming  of  the  day  when 
the  prophecy  shall  be  fulfilled  —  a  prophecy  so  much  more 
significant  in  our  eyes,  after  our  consideration  of  the  sym- 
bolism of  this  vision  of  Daniel,  "The  wolf  also  shall  dwell 
with  the  lamb,  and  the  leopard  shall  lie  down  with  the  kid  ; 
and  the  calf  and  the  young  lion  and  the  fatling  together; 
and  a  little  child  shall  lead  them.  And  the  cow  and  the 
bear  shall  feed ;  their  young  ones  shall  lie  clown  together : 
and  the  lion  shall  eat  straw  like  the  ox."*  May  the  Lord 
hasten  it  in  its  time  ! 

*  Isa.  xi.,  6,  7. 


IX. 

VISION  OF  THE  RAM  AND  THE  HE- GOAT. 

Daniel  viii.,  1-27. 

TWO  years  after  Daniel  had  seen  the  vision  so  minutely 
described  in  our  last  lecture,  and  while  he  was  resid- 
ing at  Shushan,  which  was  afterward  the  summer  palace  of 
the  Persian  monarchs,  there  came  to  him  another  supernat- 
ural revelation,  which  fitted  into,  and  filled  in,  the  outline 
which  had  been  given  in  the  former  in  regard  at  least  to 
two  of  the  great  world-powers. 

He  saw  two  hostile  animals,  one  a  ram,  and  the  other  a 
he-goat,  contending  with  each  other,  and  after  the  ram  had 
been  destroyed,  the  great  horn  which  he  had  marked  be- 
tween the  eyes  of  the  goat  was  broken,  and  four  horns  came 
out  upon  its  forehead.  Then  out  of  one  of  these  a  little 
horn  came  forth,  which  w^axed  great,  and  magnified  itself 
against  the  worship  of  the  Most  High.  While  the  prophet 
was  looking  on  the  vision,  he  heard  a  colloquy  between  two 
holy  ones,  from  which  he  received  the  information  that  the 
little  horn  was  to  be  triumphant  for  two  thousand  and  three 
hundred  days ;  and  at  the  close  of  all,  when  he  was  seeking 
for  the  meaning  of  the  vision,  there  stood  before  him  the 
appearance  of  a  man,  who  called  to  Gabriel,  saying,  "  Make 
this  man  to  understand  the  vision."  This  the  angel  did,  in 
simple  but  significant  words,  and  the  effect  upon  the  proph- 
et was  so  great  that  he  fainted  and  was  sick  certain  days. 
Thus  we  are  not  left  to  conjecture  the  interpretation  of  this 
singular  vision,  for  just  as,  in  the  parables  of  the  sower  and 


Vision  of  the  Ram  and  the  He-goat.  145 

the  tares,  the  Saviour  has  given  the  key  to  their  meaning, 
so  here  the  explanations  furnished  by  Gabriel  lay  down 
the  lines  which  we  must  follow.  Let  us  therefore  advance 
under  this  celestial  guidance  to  the  investigation  of  the 
prophecy. 

The  ram  which  Daniel  saw  was  the  Persian  Empire.  The 
two  horns  were  the  two  kingdoms  of  Media  and  Persia  of 
which  it  was  composed.  The  one  horn  higher  than  the 
other  which  came  up  last  was  the  Persian  monarchy,  which, 
though  latest  in  developing  its  strength,  did  ultimately,  in 
the  reign  of  Cyrus,  overtop,  and  indeed  almost  absorb,  Me- 
dia. "  The  ram  pushed  westward,  and  northward,  and  south- 
ward ;  so  that  no  beasts  might  stand  before  him,  neither  was 
there  any  that  could  deliver  out  of  his  hand ;  but  he  did  ac- 
cording to  his  will,  and  became  great."  So  the  conquests 
of  the  Persians  are  described.  Nothing  is  said  of  their  do- 
ings eastward  ;  but  they  subdued,  westward,  Babylon,  Meso- 
potamia, Syria,  and  Asia  Minor  ;  southward,  Palestine,  with 
parts  of  Egypt,  Arabia,  and  Ethiopia ;  and  northward,  Col- 
chis, Armenia,  and  the  regions  around  the  Caspian  Sea, 
Such  was  the  power  of  this  empire,  that  for  a  long  time  it 
was  acknowledged  to  be  the  foremost  in  the  world,  and  it 
met  with  no  successful  opposition  until  it  was  confronted 
with  the  forces  of  Greece  at  Marathon,  Salamis,  and  PlatJEa. 

"  The  rough  goat  is  the  king  of  Grecia :  and  the  great 
horn  that  is  between  his  eyes  is  the  first  king."  Thus  the 
goat,  so  long  as  the  one  horn  continued  unbroken,  symbol- 
ized the  Macedonian  Empire  in  its  first  form  as  united  un- 
der one  monarch  ;  and  it  is  interesting  to  note  that  the  sym- 
bol of  a  goat  is  often  found  in  various  ways  in  connection 
with  Macedonia,  and  was  used  as  an  emblem  of  that  king- 
dom. Of  this  custom  a  mythological  origin  is  furnished  in 
the  statement  that  Caramus,  the  first  king  of  Macedonia,  was 
led  by  goats  to  the  site  where  he  established  the  capital  of 


146  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

his  kingdom.  Mr.  Combe,  writing  to  the  editor  of  "  Cal- 
met's  Dictionary,"  says,  in  a  passage  quoted  by  Mr.  Barnes 
in  his  commentary  on  this  chapter,  "  Not  only  many  of  the 
individual  towns  in  Macedon  and  Thrace  employed  this 
type,  but  the  kingdom  of  Macedonia  itself  was  represented 
by  a  goat  which  had  this  peculiarity,  that  it  had  but  one 
horn."  The  same  author  refers  to  one  of  the  pilasters  of 
Persepolis,  on  which  there  seems  to  be  a  record  of  the 
Macedonians  becoming  tributary  to  the  Persians  in  the 
shape  of  a  goat  with  an  immense  horn  growing  out  of  the 
middle  of  its  forehead,  while  a  man  dressed  like  a  Persian 
is  standing  by  its  side,  and  holding  the  horn  with  his  left 
hand. 

This  goat  "  came  from  the  west  on  the  face  of  the  whole 
earth,  and  touched  not  the  ground :  *  *  *  *  and  there  was  no 
power  in  the  ram  to  stand  before  him,  but  he  cast  him  down 
to  the  ground  and  stamped  upon  him  :  and  there  was  none 
that  could  deliver  him  out  of  his  hands."  No  symbolism 
could  more  expressively  or  graphically  portray  the  collision 
between  the  Greek  and  Persian  empires  which  resulted  in 
the  undisputed  sovereignty  of  Alexander  the  Great.  That 
great  military  genius  was  remarkable  for  the  rapidity  of  his 
movements.  He  came,  as  it  were,  flying  to  victory ;  so  that 
it  might  well  be  said  that  the  goat  "touched  not  the  ground." 
The  same  characteristic  of  this  general  was  set  before  us  in 
the  former  vision  by  the  union  of  the  wings  of  a  bird  to  the 
body  of  the  leopard ;  and  a  very  slight  acquaintance  with 
ancient  history  is  necessary  for  the  appreciation  of  this  vivid 
picture.  We  have  only  to  take  into  consideration  a  few  of 
the  dates  of  Alexander's  life  to  recognize  its  accuracy.  He 
was  chosen  generalissimo  of  the  Greeks  against  the  Persians 
while  yet  he  was  only  twenty-one  years  old ;  and  he  died 
the  victim  of  intemperance  at  the  early  age  of  thirty-three ; 
so  that  the  whole  series  of  his  campaigns  and  victories  was 


Vision  of  the  Ram  and  the  Hegoat.  147 

comprised  within  twelve  years.  In  the  year  334  B.C.,  he 
crossed  the  Hellespont,  and  defeated  his  enemies  on  the 
bank  of  the  Granicus ;  in  ^;^$  B.C.,  he  overthrew  Darius  at 
Issus  ;  in  332  B.C.,  he  conquered  Tyre  and  Egypt,  and  found- 
ed the  city  of  Alexandria;  in  331  B.C.,  he  crossed  the  Eu- 
phrates and  the  Tigris  and  met  with  the  immense  hosts  of 
Darius,  said  to  have  amounted  to  more  than  a  million  of 
men,  and  completely  defeated  them  in  the  plains  of  Gauga- 
mela.  Thus  in  four  years  he  made  the  entire  realm  of  Per- 
sia tributary  to  Greece.  In  327  B.C.,  he  invaded  India,  and 
crossed  the  Indus,  probably  near  the  modern  Attock.  Thus 
in  little  more  than  six  years  he  pushed  his  dominion  to  the 
farthest  east. 

The  description  of  the  first  shock  of  conflict  betw^een  the 
goat  and  the  ram  given  in  the  seventh  verse  recalls  to  every 
one  familiar  with  ancient  history  the  incidents  of  the  battle 
on  the  banks  of  the  Granicus,  in  which  the  Persians  sustain- 
ed their  first  defeat  at  Alexander's  hands.  Darius  and  his 
army,  numbering  100,000  foot  and  10,000  horse,  occupied 
the  farther  side  of  the  river ;  and  the  Greeks,  who  were  only 
35,000  strong,  plunged  into  the  stream,  swam  across,  and 
rushed  on  the  Persian  forces  with  such  fury  that,  with  a  loss 
of  barely  100  men,  they  left  20,000  of  the  enemy  dead  upon 
the  field.  This  marvellous  success  spread  abroad  the  terror 
of  the  conqueror's  name,  and  prepared  the  way  for  his  an- 
nexation of  India. 

But  his  greatness  was  not  to  be  of  long  continuance,  for 
though  the  he-goat  waxed  strong,  the  great  horn  was  broken 
in  the  very  hour  of  his  strength ;  and  "  for  it  came  up  four 
notable  ones  toward  the  four  winds  of  heaven."  Very  mel- 
ancholy is  the  closing  chapter  of  the  great  conqueror's 
career,  and  I  cannot  describe  it  better  than  in  the  following 
paragraphs  from  a  very  unpretentious  but  really  valuable 
work :  "  Alexander  projected  the  conquest  of  India,  firmly 


148  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

persuaded  that  the  gods  had  decreed  to  him  the  sovereignty 
of  the  whole  habitable  globe.  He  penetrated  to  the  Gan- 
ges, and  would  have  advanced  to  the  Eastern  ocean,  had 
the  spirit  of  his  army  kept  pace  with  his  ambition.  But  his 
troops,  seeing  no  end  to  their  toils,  refused  to  proceed.  He 
returned  to  the  Indus,  from  whence,  sending  round  his  fleet 
to  the  Persian  Gulf,  he  marched  his  army  across  the  desert 
to  Persepolis.  Indignant  that  he  had  found  a  limit  to  his 
conquests,  he  abandoned  himself  to  every  excess  of  luxury 
and  debaucheiy.  The  arrogance  of  his  nature,  and  the  ar- 
dor of  his  passions,  heightened  by  continual  intemperance, 
broke  out  into  the  most  outrageous  excesses  of  cruelty,  for 
which,  in  the  few  intervals  of  sober  reflection,  his  ingen- 
uous mind  suffered  the  keenest  remorse.  From  Persepolis 
he  returned  to  Babylon,  and  there  died,  after  a  fit  of  de- 
bauch, in  the  thirty-third  year  of  his  age  and  thirteenth  of 
his  reign.  On  his  death-bed  he  named  no  successor,  but 
gave  his  ring  to  Perdiccas,  one  of  his  officers.  When  his 
courtiers  asked  him  to  whom  he  wished  the  empire  to  de- 
volve, he  replied,  'To  the  most  worthy.'  Perdiccas,  sensi- 
ble that  his  pretensions  would  not  justify  a  direct  assump- 
tion of  the  government  of  this  vast  empire,  brought  about  a 
division  of  the  whole  among  thirty -three  of  the  principal 
officers,  to  each  of  whom  he  assigned  the  charge  of  a  prov- 
ince, and  to  himself  he  reserved  the  commander-in-chief- 
ship  of  the  army,  trusting  to  their  inevitable  dissensions  for 
an  opportunity  to  reduce  them  all  under  his  own  authority. 
Hence  arose  a  series  of  wars  and  intrigues  of  which  the  de- 
tail is  barren  and  uninteresting.  It  is  sufficient  to  say,  the 
consequence  was  a  total  extirpation  of  the  family  of  Alexan- 
der, and  a  new  partition  of  the  empire  into  four  great  mon- 
archies :  Macedon,  with  a  part  of  Greece,  which  fell  to  the 
share  of  Canander ;  Thrace,  Bithynia,  and  the  Northern  re- 
gions, which  were  the  lot  of  Lysimachus ;  Eg>-pt,  with  Cy- 


Vision  of  the  Ram  and  the  He-goat.  149 

rene  and  Cyprus,  which  were  the  share  of  Ptolemy ;  and 
Syria,  with  all  Upper  Asia  and  the  Eastern  provinces,  which 
formed  the  kingdom  of  Seleucia."*  These  were  the  four 
horns  on  the  head  of  the  goat,  and  correspond  also  to  the 
four  heads  of  the  leopard  in  the  former  vision. 

Soon,  however,  attention  is  concentrated  on  the  history 
of  one  of  these  divisions,  for  thus  the  record  proceeds 
(verses  9-12)  :  "And  out  of  one  of  them  came  forth  a  little 
horn,  which  waxed  exceeding  great,  toward  the  south,  and 
toward  the  east,  and  toward  the  pleasant  land.  And  it  wax- 
ed great,  even  to  the  host  of  heaven ;  and  it  cast  down 
some  of  the  host  and  of  the  stars  to  the  ground,  and  stamp- 
ed upon  them.  Yea,  he  magnified  himself  even  to  the 
prince  of  the  host,  and  by  him  the  daily  sacrifice  was  taken 
away,  and  the  place  of  his  sanctuary  was  cast  down.  And 
a  host  was  given  him  against  the  daily  sacrifice  by  reason 
of  transgression,  and  it  cast  down  the  truth  to  the  ground ; 
and  it  practised,  and  prospered."  But  with  this  description 
we  must  combine  the  interpretation  given  by  Gabriel  (verses 
22-25):  "Now  that  being  broken,  whereas  four  stood  up 
for  it,  four  kingdoms  shall  stand  up  out  of  the  nation,  but 
not  in  his  power.  And  in  the  latter  time  of  their  kingdom, 
when  the  transgressors  are  come  to  the  full,  a  king  of  fierce 
countenance,  and  understanding  dark  sentences,  shall  stand 
up.  And  his  power  shall  be  mighty,  but  not  by  his  own 
power :  and  he  shall  destroy  wonderfully,  and  shall  prosper, 
and  practise,  and  shall  destroy  the  mighty  and  the  holy 
people.  And  through  his  policy  also  he  shall  cause  craft 
to  prosper  in  his  hand  ;  and  he  shall  magnify  himself  in  his 
heart,  and  by  peace  shall  destroy  many :  he  shall  also  stand 
up  against  the  Prince  of  princes  ;  but  he  shall  be  broken 
without  hand." 

*  "  Elements  of  General  History,  Ancient  and  Modern,"  by  Alexander 
Fraser  Tytler,  Lord  Woodhouselee,  pp.  56-58. 


150  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

In  seeking  to  expound  these  verses,  we  must  have  regard 
in  the  outset  to  the  distinction  between  the  "  Httle  horn  " 
in  this  vision  and  that  in  the  prediction  of  the  seventh  chap- 
ter. In  the  latter  case,  the  little  horn  arose  among  the  ten 
horns  on  the  head  of  the  fourth  beast,  which  must,  as  we 
think,  be  interpreted  of  the  Roman  Empire.  But  in  the 
vision  now  before  us,  the  "  little  horn  "  springs  out  of  one 
of  the  four  horns  on  the  head  of  the  goat ;  that  is,  out  of  one 
of  the  four  kingdoms  into  which  the  Grecian  Empire  was 
divided  after  Alexander's  death  ;  and  "  in  the  latter  time  " 
of  these  kingdoms  ;  that  is,  just  before  they  were  all  super- 
seded by  the  Roman  power.  Now,  if  we  keep  this  distinc- 
tion clearly  before  us,  it  will  save  us  from  much  of  the  con- 
fusion into  which  expositors  have  fallen  in  treating  of  this 
chapter.  Thus  there  are  many,  of  whom  the  excellent  Bish- 
op Newton  may  be  cited  as  a  specimen,  who  take  this  lit- 
tle horn  to  represent  the  Roman  Empire  as  a  persecuting 
power.  He  says,  "  The  persecuting  power  of  Rome,  wheth- 
er exercised  toward  the  Jews  or  toward  the  Christians,  by 
the  emperors  or  by  the  popes,  is  still  the  little  horn.  The 
tyranny  is  the  same  ;  but  as  exerted  in  Greece  and  the 
East,  it  is  the  little  horn  of  the  he-goat  of  the  third  empire  ; 
as  exerted  in  Italy  and  the  West,  it  is  the  little  horn  of  the 
fourth  beast,  or  the  fourth  empire.*  But  this  is  to  substitute 
an  idealized  principle  for  a  concrete  kingdom ;  and  in  the 
explanation  of  Gabriel,  the  horns  are  spoken  of  as  repre- 
senting not  abstract  qualities,  but  visible  monarchies.  We 
must  adhere  to  that  throughout,  and  therefore  we  cannot 
accept  the  theory  which  sees  in  the  little  horn  simply  the 
representative  of  religious  intolerance.  There  are  only  two 
beasts  in  this  vision.  Evidently,  therefore,  the  prophecy  is 
restricted  to  the  histories  of  two  out  of  the  four  great  em- 

*  "  Dissertations  on  the  Prophecies,"  p.  287. 


Vision  of  the  Ram  and  the  He-goat.  151 

pires  to  which  we  have  so  often  aUuded ;  and  it  is  alleged 
by  Gabriel  that  these  two  are  the  Persian  Empire  and  the 
Greek  Empire ;  first,  in  its  united  form  under  Alexander ; 
and,  second,  in  its  divided  form,  under  his  four  successors. 
Now,  out  of  one  of  these  four  sections  of  Alexander's  em- 
pire some  special  development  was  to  come  "  in  the  latter 
time  of  their  kingdom ;"  and  to  take  that  as  describing 
something  which  occurred  under  the  Roman  Empire,  by 
which  all  the  four  were  absorbed,  seems  to  me  absurd. 
Rather  must  we  look  for  the  fulfilment  of  this  prediction  in 
some  great  forth -putting  of  blasphemous  pretension,  and 
some  terrible  season  of  persecution,  in  one  of  the  divisions 
of  the  Greek  Empire,  not  long  before  it  was  overcome  by  the 
power  of  Rome.  We  cannot,  therefore,  regard  this  prophecy 
as  referring  to  anything  that  occurred  in  Roman  history. 

For  a  similar  reason,  we  cannot  accept  the  interpretation 
of  those  who  see  in  the  little  horn  of  this  vision  a  represen- 
tation of  the  rise  and  progress  of  Mohammedanism.  This 
horn  is  a  development  out  of  one  of  the  four  divisions  into 
which  the  Greek  Empire  was  broken  up,  and  before  they 
were  destroyed  by  the  fourth  world-power. 

Still  less  can  we  look  with  favor  on  the  theory  of  Dr.  S.  P. 
Tregelles  on  the  subject.  That  eminent  critic  looks  upon 
the  appearance  of  this  horn  as  indicating  something  that  is 
still  in  the  future.  He  affirms  that  it  is  to  arise  in  one  of 
the  four  divisions  of  the  empire  that  was  once  held  by  Alex- 
ander, and  then  goes  on  to  allege  that  "from  the  mention 
of  the  daily  sacrifice  and  the  sanctuary,  it  is  plain  that  as 
part  of  the  actings  of  the  horn  these  things  wdll  be  found  in 
existence :  a  portion  of  the  Jews  will  have  returned  in  un- 
belief to  their  own  land,  and  the  worship  of  God  will  be  at- 
tempted to  be  carried  on  according  to  the  Mosaic  ritual."* 

*  "  Remarks  on  the  Prophetic  Visions  in  the  Book  of  Daniel,"  by 
S.  P.  Tregelles,  p.  94. 


152  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

But  there  is  nothing  of  all  this  in  the  words  of  Gabriel ; 
and  nothing  can  be  more  evident  than  that  we  are  shut  up 
to  a  date  near  that  of  the  close  of  the  four  divisions  of  Alex- 
ander's empire,  and  before  the  full  development  of  the  Ro- 
man power.  This  seems  to  indicate  that  the  reference  is  to 
Antiochus  Epiphanes. 

That  monarch,  who  was  the  son  of  Antiochus  the  Great, 
succeeded  his  brother  Seleucus  Philopater,  and  reigned 
over  Syria  from  176  B.C.  to  164  B.C.  He  was  a  brutal  ty- 
rant, and  proved  himself  one  of  the  most  blood-thirsty  en- 
emies of  the  Jewish  nation.  He  called  himself,  indeed, 
Epiphanes,  or  the  Illustrious,  but  he  was  frequently  styled 
by  others  Epimanes,  or  the  Maniac.  Many  of  his  evil  deeds 
are  related  in  the  books  of  the  Maccabees,  and  the  merest 
summary  of  these,  which  is  all  that  we  can  now  attempt  to 
give,  will  be  sufficient  to  identify  him  with  the  little  horn  of 
this  vision.  In  his  youth  he  had  been  given  by  his  father  as 
a  hostage  to  the  Romans,  but  was  released  by  the  kindness 
of  his  brother,  who  sent  his  own  son  in  his  stead.  In  the 
same  year  his  brother  was  murdered  by  one  Heliodorus, 
who  seized  upon  the  throne,  but  was  speedily  dispossessed 
by  Antiochus.  His  sister,  Cleopatra,  who  had  been  mar- 
ried to  the  King  of  Egypt,  having  died,  Antiochus  laid  claim 
to  CcElesyria  and  Palestine,  and  this  led  to  a  war  with 
Egypt,  wherein  "he  waxed  great  toward  the  south."  It 
was  during  this  war  that  he  perpetrated  those  cruelties 
upon  the  Jews — the  inhabitants  of  "  the  pleasant  land  " — 
which  have  made  his  name  forever  infamous  to  the  chosen 
people,  and  which  gave  rise  to  those  heroic  strivings  for  in- 
dependence with  which  the  history  of  Judas  Maccabaeus  is 
imperishably  associated. 

While  Antiochus  was  in  Egypt  seeking  to  conquer  that 
country,  a  false  rumor  of  his  death  was  circulated  through- 
out Palestine,  and  filled  the  peoples'  hearts  with  joy,  be- 


Vision  of  the  Ram  and  the  Hegoat.  153 

cause  by  his  influence  the  true  high-priest  had  been  thrust 
out  of  his  office,  to  make  way  for  an  unprincipled  man  who 
was  one  of  his  own  creatures.  When  he  was  informed  of 
the  satisfaction  with  whicli  the  news  of  his  reported  death 
had  been  received  by  the  Jews,  and  especially  of  the  at- 
tempt made  by  the  rightful  high-priest  to  regain  his  posi- 
tion, he  chose  to  believe  that  the  entire  Jewish  nation  had 
revolted  ;  and,  marching  with  all  haste,  he  laid  siege  to  Je- 
rusalem and  took  it,  slaying  in  three  days  more  than  forty 
thousand  persons,  and  taking  as  many  more  captives,  to  be 
sold  as  slaves.  Not  content  with  this,  he  forced  his  way 
into  the  Temple,  entered  the  very  holy  of  holies  itself,  and 
caused  a  great  sow  to  be  offered  in  sacrifice  upon  the  altar 
of  burnt-offering,  while  broth  made  from  the  same  unclean 
flesh  was  sprinkled  by  his  order  over  the  sacred  precincts 
for  the  purpose  of  defiling  them.  On  his  departure,  he  took 
with  him  the  altar  of  incense,  the  golden  candlestick,  the 
table  of  showbread,  and  other  sacred  vessels,  to  the  value 
of  eighteen  hundred  talents  of  gold.  He  established  in  the 
office  of  high-priest  the  traitor  Menelaus,  who  had  been  his 
conductor  into  the  Temple,  and  left  behind  him  a  Phr)'gian 
named  Philip,  a  man  of  cruel  and  barbarous  disposition,  to 
be  governor  of  Jerusalem. 

Two  years  after  the  commission  of  these  enormities,  re- 
turning from  another  invasion  of  Egypt,  where  he  had  been 
checkmated  by  the  Romans,  he  vented  his  disappointment 
upon  the  Jews,  and  detailed  from  his  army  twenty-two  thou- 
sand men,  under  ApoUonius,  with  orders  to  destroy  Jerusa- 
lem. On  his  arrival  at  the  holy  city,  ApoUonius  conducted 
himself  peaceably,  concealing  his  purpose  till  the  Sabbath ; 
but  on  that  day,  when  the  people  were  assembled  in  their 
synagogues,  he  let  loose  his  soldiers  upon  them,  and  com- 
manded them  to  slay  all  the  men,  but  to  take  captive  all  the 
women  and  children.    These  orders  were  only  too  faithfully 

7* 


154  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

obeyed,  so  that  the  streets  were  filled  with  blood.  He 
spoiled  the  city  of  its  treasures,  set  fire  to  it  in  several 
places,  pulled  down  the  walls,  and,  with  the  materials  so 
obtained,  erected  a  fortress  on  an  eminence  in  the  city  of 
David  over  against  the  Temple,  and  thoroughly  command- 
ing its  courts.  From  this  stronghold  the  soldiers  fell  on  all 
who  went  up  to  worship  ;  and,  as  a  consequence,  the  Tem- 
ple was  deserted,  and  the  daily  sacrifices  ceased  to  be  of- 
fered. I  ought  to  mention  also  that  the  statue  of  Jupiter 
Olympus  was  introduced  into  the  Temple,  and  victims  offer- 
ed to  it  on  the  altar  of  Jehovah.  In  connection  with  these 
enormities,  proclamations  were  issued  forbidding  circumcis- 
ion, enjoining  the  eating  of  all  manner  of  unclean  meats, 
and  commanding  the  profanation  of  the  Sabbath  and  festi- 
val days.  From  Jerusalem  the  persecution  spread  over  the 
land ;  and,  "  as  a  last  insult,  the  feasts  of  the  Bacchanalia, 
the  license  of  which,  as  they  were  celebrated  in  the  later 
ages  of  Greece,  shocked  the  severe  virtue  of  the  older  Ro- 
mans, were  substituted  for  the  national  festival  of  Taberna- 
cles."* Thus  the  sad  description  in  the  seventy -ninth 
Psalm  was  verified :  "  O  God,  the  heathen  are  come  into 
thine  inheritance ;  thy  holy  temple  have  they  defiled ;  they 
have  laid  Jerusalem  on  heaps.  The  dead  bodies  of  thy 
servants  have  they  given  to  be  meat  unto  the  fowls  of  the 
heaven,  the  flesh  of  thy  saints  unto  the  beasts  of  the  earth. 
Their  blood  have  they  shed  like  water  round  about  Jerusa- 
lem ;  and  there  was  none  to  bury  them.  We  are  become  a 
reproach  to  our  neighbors,  a  scorn  and  derision  to  them 
that  are  round  about  us."  And  those  who  take  note  of  the 
fearful  cruelties  to  which  they  were  subjected  will  not  won- 
der at  the  prayer  which  follows  :  "  Pour  out  thy  wrath  upon 
the  heathen  that  have  not  known  thee,  and  upon  the  king- 
doms that  have  not  called  upon  thy  name." 

*  Milnian's  "  History  of  the  Jews,"  vol.  ii.,  pp.  3S-44. 


Vision  of  the  Ram  and  the  He-goat.  155 

In  the  vision  before  us,  it  is  said  that  "  a  host  was  given 
him  against  the  daily  sacrifice  by  reason  of  transgression  ;" 
and  in  Gabriel's  explanation  the  appearance  of  this  king 
of  fierce  countenance  is  dated  in  "  the  latter  time  of  their 
kingdom,  when  the  transgressors  are  come  to  the  full." 
We  may  conclude,  therefore,  that  all  this  came  upon  the 
Jewish  people,  as  a  chastisement  for  their  sins  ;  and  per- 
haps the  historian  of  the  Maccabees  gives  us  the  explana- 
tion of  these  clauses  when  he  says,  "  In  those  days  went 
there  out  of  Israel  wicked  men,  who  persuaded  many,  say- 
ing. Let  us  go  and  make  covenant  with  the  heathen  that  are 
round  about  us ;  for  since  we  departed  from  them  we  have 
had  much  sorrow.  So  this  device  pleased  them  well.  Then 
certain  of  the  people  were  so  forward  herein,  that  they  went 
to  the  king,  who  gave  them  license  to  do  after  the  ordi- 
nances of  the  heathen,  whereupon  they  built  a  place  of  ex- 
ercise at  Jerusalem,  according  to  the  custom  of  the  heathen, 
and  made  themselves  uncircumcised,  and  forsook  the  holy 
covenant  and  joined  themselves  to  the  heathen,  and  w^ere 
sold  to  do  mischief."* 

But  the  desolation  of  the  sanctuary,  though  thus,  as  it 
seems  probable,  designed  to  reprove  the  conformity  of  the 
Jews  to  heathen  customs,  was  not  to  be  perpetual.  The  al- 
tars were  to  be  restored.  The  sacrifices  were  again  to  be 
offered  daily  in  the  Temple  court ;  for  "  many  in  Israel  were 
fully  resolved,  and  confirmed  in  themselves,  not  to  carry  out 
the  ordinances  of  Antiochus  in  the  eating  of  unclean  things  ; 
wherefore  they  chose  rather  to  die,  that  they  might  not  pro- 
fane the  holy  covenant."!  Among  these  faithful  ones  were 
Mattathias  and  his  sons,  who,  wdth  some  others,  fled  to  the 
wilderness,  where  they  remained  until  they  gained  an  oppor- 
tunity of  taking  up  arms  for  themselves  and  their  country. 

*  I  Mace,  i.,  11-15.  t  Ibid,  i.,  62,  63. 


156  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

After  a  series  of  the  bravest  struggles  and  the  most  brilliant 
triumphs,  which  flame  forth  as  redeeming  features  in  the 
later  history  of  the  Jewish  nation,  Judas  Maccabaeus,  with 
his  followers,  entered  the  ruined  Jerusalem.  He  found 
shrubs  growing  in  the  courts  of  the  Temple,  and  the  cham- 
bers of  the  priests  thrown  down.  "  With  wild  lamentations 
and  the  sound  of  martial  trumpets,  they  mingled  their 
prayers  and  praises  to  the  God  of  their  fathers.  Judas 
took  the  precaution  to  keep  a  body  of  armed  men  on  the 
watch  against  the  Syrian  garrison  in  the  citadel,  and  then 
proceeded  to  install  the  most  blameless  of  the  priests  in 
their  office,  to  repair  the  sacred  edifice,  purify  every  part 
from  the  profanation  of  the  heathen,  construct  a  new  altar, 
and  replace  out  of  the  booty  all  the  sacred  vessels.*  This 
he  did  with  such  demonstration  of  gladness,  that,  in  com- 
memoration of  the  restoration  of  worship  in  their  sanctuary, 
the  Jews  established  an  annual  festival,  which  was  kept  for 
eight  days,  and  called  the  Feast  of  the  Dedication.! 

In  connection  with  this  restoration  of  the  daily  sacrifice, 
however,  the  only  serious  difficulty  rising  out  of  the  inter- 
pretation which  we  have  given  of  this  prophecy  emerges. 
Josephus  has  alleged  that  the  Temple  was  cleansed  just 
three  years  and  six  months  after  the  setting-up  of  the  statue 
of  Jupiter  Olympus  in  the  Holy  of  Holies. $  Now,  three  and 
a  half  years,  taking  three  hundred  and  sixty  days  for  a  year, 
will  give  twelve  hundred  and  sixty  days  ;  whereas  in  the 
conversation  between  the  two  holy  ones  (verses  13,  14)  it  is 
said  that  these  desolations  were  to  last  two  thousand  three 
hundred  days.  But  presuming  that  the  precise  number  is 
given,  and  not  merely  a  definite  for  an  indefinite  number,  the 


*  Milman's  "  History  of  the  Jews,"  vol.  ii.,  p.  52. 
t  See  John  x.,  22  ;   i  Mace,  iv.,  36-59. 
J  Josephus,  "  Wars  of  the  Jews,"  I.,  i.,  i. 


Vision  of  the  Ram  and  the  He-goat.  157 

discrepancy  may  be  thus  accounted  for.  The  vision  may  in- 
ckide  the  whole  line  of  events  beginning  with  the  siege  of 
Jerusalem  by  Antiochus,  while  Josephus  may  be  restricting 
his  calculation  to  the  precise  interval  between  the  setting-up 
of  the  statue  of  Jupiter  in  the  Temple  and  the  restoration 
of  the  daily  sacrifices.  This  is  the  view  taken  by  Calvin 
on  the  subject,  for  he  says :  "  Two  thousand  three  hundred 
days  fill  up  six  years  and  three  months  and  a  half.  Now, 
if  we  compare  the  testimony  of  history,  and  especially  of  the 
Book  of  Maccabees,  with  this  prophecy,  we  shall  find  that 
miserable  race  oppressed  for  six  years  under  the  tyranny  of 
Antiochus.  The  idol  of  Olympian  Juj^iter  did  not  remain 
in  the  Temple  for  six  continuous  years,  but  the  commence- 
ment of  the  pollution  occurred  at  the  very  first  attack,  as  if 
he  would  insult  the  very  face  of  God,  As,  therefore,  relig- 
ion was  then  laid  prostrate  on  the  ground  until  the  cleans- 
ing of  the  Temple,  we  see  how  very  clearly  the  prophecy 
and  the  history  agree,  as  far  as  this  narrative  is  concerned." 

It  only  remains  that  we  refer  for  a  moment  to  the  death 
of  Antiochus,  which  is  described  in  the  words  of  Gabriel : 
"  He  shall  be  broken  without  hand."  Returning  from  an 
unsuccessful  expedition  against  Persia,  he  died  in  a  small 
town  among  the  mountains  of  Paretacene,  not  by  violence, 
but  by  a  strange  disease,  loathsome  almost  as  that  by  which 
Herod  was  smitten  in  the  moment  of  his  blasphemy.*  But 
the  pain  of  his  body  was  not  to  be  compared  to  the  anguish 
of  his  spirit,  for  he  was  afflicted  by  horrible  apparitions  and 
remorse,  the  consequence,  as  the  historian  of  the  Maccabees 
asserts,  of  his  barbarity  and  sacrilege  in  Judea.f 

But  wherein,  it  may  be  asked,  was  the  necessity  for  thus 
predicting  these  enormities,  and  the  destruction  of  him  who 
should  inflict  them  ?     The  obvious  answer  is  because  An- 

*  Acts  xii.,  23.  t  See  the  whole  description,  i  Mace,  vi.,  1-16. 


158  Daniel  the  Beloved, 

tiochus  confronted  the  people  of  God  with  a  danger  which 
never  before  had  menaced  them,  and  the  Lord  thus  gra- 
ciously designed  to  furnish  them  beforehand  with  special 
grace  by  which  they  might  be  sustained.  None  of  the 
world-powers  by  whom  the  Jews  had  been  subjugated  up 
till  this  time  had  interfered  to  any  great  extent  with  their 
worship.  On  the  contrary,  as  we  learn  from  many  passages 
in  this  Book  of  Daniel,  and  in  those  of  Ezra  and  Nehemiah, 
they  had  been  protected  in  their  religion,  and  had  even  been 
assisted  by  heathen  emperors  in  rebuilding  their  Temple. 
But  now  one  was  about  to  appear  who  would  endeavor  to 
destroy  their  religion  altogether,  and  it  was  necessary  that 
they  should  be  forewarned  of  his  attacks,  that  they  might 
be  forearmed  to  meet  them.  Nothing  in  the  whole  former 
history  of  Israel  can  be  compared  with  the  sufferings  which 
the  people  endured  at  the  hands  of  Antiochus  ;  and  the 
fruit  which  this  prophecy  bore  was  the  glorious  struggle  of 
the  Maccabees,  which  gave  a  new  lustre  to  the  Jewish  name. 

I  have  left  myself  little  time  for  any  extended  practical 
remarks,  but  I  may  not  conclude  without  gleaning  a  few  les- 
sons for  our  modern  life  from  the  volume  of  history  which 
is  outlined  in  this  remarkable  vision. 

We  may  learn,  then,  in  the  first  place,  that  the  strength 
of  one  evil  habit  may  overcome  even  the  mightiest  conquer- 
or. Very  suggestive,  in  this  regard,  is  the  history  of  Alex- 
ander the  Great ;  and  it  is  not  without  a  sigh  of  regret  that 
we  read  of  the  pupil  of  the  famous  Aristotle  dying  as  the 
victim  of  his  own  excesses  at  the  early  age  of  thirty-three. 
He  could  conquer  the  world  by  his  armies,  yet  intemper- 
ance was  his  master  and  destroyer.  He  was  filled  with 
rage  and  disappointment  because  he  was  foiled  in  his  efforts/ 
to  reach  the  Eastern  Ocean,  yet  was  he  never  fired  with  the 
nobler  ambition  of  overmastering  the  world  within  himself. 
He  had  the  greatness  of  taking  not  cities  only,  but  empires ; 


Vision  of  the  Ram  and  the  He-goat.  159 

yet  he  knew  nothing  of  the  higher  greatness  of  ruling  his 
own  spirit ;  and  the  contrast  between  his  life  and  that  of  An- 
other which  lasted  only  three -and -thirty  years  cannot  but 
strike  every  thoughtful  reader  of  ancient  history. 

But  how  many  there  are,  even  among  ourselves,  who  have 
made  similar  conquests,  and  been  themselves  similarly  over- 
come !  We  think  of  those  two  poets,  the  one  a  peer,  and 
the  other  a  ploughman,  who  won  for  themselves  the  crown 
which  is  awarded  only  to  the  rarest  genius,  and  yet  were 
held  by  the  chains  of  ignominious  and  debasing  habit.  We 
think  of  the  merchant  who  has  acquired  ample  fortune,  out- 
distancing all  competitors,  but  falls  at  last  into  a  drunkard's 
grave.  We  think  of  the  workman  whose  energy  and  skill 
have  placed  him  in  the  front  rank  of  inventors,  but  who  lived 
in  thirsty  wretchedness,  a  meaner  man  than  multitudes  who 
had  not  half  his  ingenuity.  We  think  of  the  youth  who  has 
gained  for  himself  the  affection  of  his  circle,  and  is  the  idol 
of  his  family  and  his  neighborhood,  but  sinks  at  length  into 
rags  and  reproach,  because  he  has  become  the  slave  of  the 
bottle.  It  would  almost  seem  that  the  dreadful  habit  of  in- 
temperance has  a  peculiar  affinity  for  the  sensitive  organiza- 
tions of  those  who  are  cut  out  for  special  excellence  in 
some  department  of  human  activity.  The  eloquent  orator ; 
the  entrancing  musician  ;  the  poet  with  his  frenzied  eye  and 
burning  words  ;  the  man  with  that  special  magnetism  that 
attracts  the  affection  of  every  one  to  himself ;  in  a  word,  the 
possessor  of  that  subtle  thing  which  we  call  genius,  seems 
to  be  in  particular  danger  from  strong  drink ;  and  not  un- 
frequently  reputations  that  would  be  otherwise  irreproach- 
able are  blurred  and  blotted  by  intemperance. 

The  world  has  become  wiser  in  many  respects  since  Al- 
exander's days,  but  in  this  it  has  made  little  progress ;  and 
we  may  be  forgiven,  therefore,  if  we  seek  to  point  a  moral 
from  the  great  Grecian  emperor's  excesses.    To  no  purpose 


i6o  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

shall  we  gain  other  crowns,  if  we  are  ourselves  the  slaves  of 
appetite.  The  most  splendid  education,  and  the  most  unpar- 
alleled successes  in  other  respects,  will  not  compensate  for 
the  ruin  of  character ;  and,  standing  here  at  the  grave  of 
Alexander,  we  renew  our  warning  against  the  deceitfulness 
f  of  strong  drink.  It  is  easier  to  acquire  a  habit  than  it  is  to 
I  break  it  off ;  so  let  me  urge  every  one  who  is  starting  out 
on  the  battle  of  life  to  wage  his  first  warfare  with  himself. 
Settle  at  the  very  outset  the  question  whether  you  are  to  be 
the  body's,  or  your  body  is  to  be  yours  ;  and  see  to  it  that 
you  do  not  advance  to  the  great  work  of  your  existence 
handicapped  and  hampered  by  an  evil  habit.  Resolve  that 
appetite  shall  never  overmaster  you ;  and  remember  that 
when  you  have  vanquished  self,  you  are  already  a  mightier 
conqueror  than  was  the  great  Alexander  after  he  had  sub- 
dued the  world. 

We  may  learn,  in  the  second  place,  that  conformity  to 
the  world  is  fraught  with  great  danger  to  the  people  of  God. 
If  we  have  been  right  in  conjecturing  that  the  evils  which 
came  upon  the  Jews  in  the  days  of  Antiochus  were  designed 
as  chastisements  for  their  unfaithfulness  to  the  covenant, 
the  history  over  which  we  have  come  is,  in  this  regard,  full 
of  most  salutary  warning.  Nor  does  it  stand  alone.  The 
same  lesson  comes  out  of  every  chapter  of  the  Book  of 
Judges,  and  is  most  solemnly  enforced  by  the  captivity  of 
the  Hebrews  in  the  Babylonish  land.  And  though  the  sanc- 
tions of  the  ancient  covenant  were  mainly  national  and  tem- 
poral, let  no  one  imagine  that  these  disciplinary  chastise- 
ments which  came  upon  the  Jews  have  no  meaning  for  us 
in  these  New  Testament  days ;  for  the  peculiar  excellences 
of  the  Christian's  character  are  his  truest  safeguards  in  the 
world.  Read,  again,  the  last  chapter  of  the  Epistle  to  the 
Ephesians,  and  you  will  see  that  the  Christian's  graces  are, 
at  the  same  time,  his  armor.     If,  therefore,  we  would  keep 


Vision  of  the  Ram  and  the  He-goat.  i6i 

ourselves  in  safety  from  the  fiery  darts  of  the  wicked  one, 
we  must  cultivate  those  peculiarities  of  the  Christian  char- 
acter which  are  the  very  raisofi  d'etre  of  its  existence.  The 
tendency  of  these  clays,  indeed,  is  to  minimize  the  difference 
between  the  Christian  and  other  men  ;  and  the  boundary  be- 
tween the  Church  and  the  world,  which  in  the  Word  of  God 
is  as  clearly  defined  as  the  lines  of  latitude  and  longitude 
on  the  map,  is  in  actual  life  almost  as  imperceptible  as  are 
these  lines  upon  the  surface  of  the  globe.  So  it  happens 
that  the  Church  of  Christ  is  invaded  by  the  unbelieving,  and 
its  power  to  resist  and  overcome  the  world  is  thereby  sadly 
weakened.  That  which  gives  salt  all  its  value  is  its  saltness ; 
and  when  that  quality  is  lost  by  it,  men  cast  it  from  them 
and  trample  it  underfoot.  Its  wholesome  character  and  anti- 
septic influence  depend  upon  its  peculiarity ;  and  when  that 
is  lost,  it  is  useless.  In  the  same  way,  our  peculiarities  as 
Christians  are  the  very  elements  of  our  power.  By  these  it  is 
that  the  Church  has  its  aggressive  force  and  purifying  influ- 
ence upon  the  world  ;  and  when  these  are  lost,  then  we  may 
look  for  some  avenging  Antiochus  to  menace  its  very  exist- 
ence on  the  earth.  So  long  as  the  Church  maintains  its 
character  as  a  witness-bearer  for  Christ,  and  for  that  truth 
and  that  integrity  which  he  has  enjoined,  God  will  keep  it 
strong  and  prosperous ;  but  when  it  falls  below  its  mission, 
and  sinks  into  a  mere  empty  formalism,  be  sure  that  Anti- 
ochus is  at  the  door ! 

Nor  should  we  fail  to  mark  the  bearing  of  these  principles 
on  our  national  history.  By  the  great  favor  of  our  God, 
this  republic  has  been  permitted  to  enter  upon  the  second 
century  of  its  life,  and  many  eloquent  eulogiums  have  been 
pronounced  on  those  who  fought  the  battles  of  its  early  in- 
dependence. But  let  us  never  forget  that  it  is  to  be  con- 
served by  the  same  qualities  as  those  by  which  it  was  gain- 
ed.    Imitation  is  the  grandest  paneg}Tic  ;  and  the  noblest 


i62  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

centennial  oration  will  be  to  follow  the  example  of  the  fa- 
thers of  the  republic.  We  cannot,  indeed,  be  the  mere 
repetition  of  them ;  and  to  attempt  to  produce  anything  of 
that  kind  would  be  as  ridiculous  as  it  would  be  for  us  to  go 
back  to  the  fashion  of  their  dress.  But  we  can  imbibe  their 
principles,  and  apply  these  to  the  evils  of  our  times  as  cour- 
ageously as  they  applied  them  to  the  circumstances  of  their 
age.  They  were  distinguished  by  honesty,  temperance, 
truth,  patriotism,  and  piety ;  and  concerning  these  qualities 
we  may  say,  as  the  barons  of  Runnymede  said  of  their 
swords,  "  By  these  we  have  obtained  our  liberties,  and  with 
these  we  will  defend  them."  Let  us  act  on  their  principles 
in  our  conflict  with  internal  corruption,  with  the  same  fidel- 
ity and  disinterestedness  as  they  did  in  their  resistance  to 
external  oppression,  and  the  second  century  of  our  history 
will  be  even  more  glorious  than  the  first ;  but  if  we  fall  from 
these,  be  sure  that  some  Antiochus  will  come  to  rifle  us  of 
our  treasures,  and  make  our  high  places  desolate  ! 

We  may  learn,  finally,  the  limited  power  of  the  enemies 
of  God's  people.  The  spoliation  of  Jerusalem  by  Antiochus 
was  to  be  only  for  a  season.  The  world -tyrant  could  go 
only  a  certain  length.  Like  Satan  with  Job,  he  was  under 
a  divine  restraint,  which  said  to  him,  "  Hitherto  shalt  thou 
come,  and  no  farther."  God  is  stronger  than  the  mightiest 
man  ;  and  so  to  the  people  of  God  who  continue  faithful  unto 
him  there  is  a  limit  of  calamity.  The  longest  night  is  fol- 
lowed by  the  dawn ;  and,  as  the  proverb  has  it,  "  Time  and 
the  hour  run  through  the  roughest  day."  Trial  will  not  al- 
ways last ;  and  the  prediction  which  to-night  we  have  been 
considering  was  given  to  Daniel,  that  it  might  sustain  the 
people  under  new  and  unheard-of  suffering,  by  the  prospect 
of  a  speedy  relief.  Inspired  by  the  truth  which  was  here 
declared,  Judas  and  his  faithful  band  "were  strong,  and 
did  exploits."     They  knew  that  God  was  on  their  side  ;  and 


Vision  of  the  Ram  and  the  He-goat.  163 

though  the  ordeal  was  tremendous,  they  clung  fast  to  him. 
Nay,  the  very  Severity  of  the  conflict  developed  in  them  a 
courage  that  was  akin  to  that  of  the  greatest  of  their  fathers. 
So  let  us  bear  up  under  all  calamity,  in  the  spirit  of  him 
who  said,  "  Our  light  affliction,  which  is  but  for  a  moment, 
worketh  for  us  a  far  more  exceeding  and  eternal  weight  of 
glor}^  While  we  look  not  at  the  things  which  are  seen, 
but  at  the  things  which  are  unseen  ;  for  the  things  which 
are  seen  are  temporal,  but  the  things  which  are  unseen  are 
eternal."  Be  patient,  be  uncompromising,  be  courageous. 
"  Stablish  your  hearts,  for  the  coming  of  the  Lord  draweth 
nigh."  It  is  but  a  little  while,  and  then  we  shall  enter  the 
new  Jerusalem,  with  more  triumphant  ecstasy  than  the 
great  Maccabaeus  felt  when  he  stood  in  the  courts  of  the  old 
Temple ;  and 

"  When  the  shore  is  won  at  last, 
Who  shall  count  the  billows  past.-"' 


X. 

THE  SEVENTY  WEEKS. 
Daniel  ix.,  1-27. 

THOUGH  Daniel's  hands  were  filled  with  the  busi- 
ness of  the  king  whom  he  served,  his  heart  was  ever 
turned  toward  Jerusalem.  This  was  not  simply  because 
that  city  was  the  metropolis  of  his  father-land,  but  rather 
because  it  was  the  "place  which  God  had  chosen  to  place 
his  name  there."  The  patriotism  of  the  Jew  was  rooted  in 
his  piety ;  and  though  Jerusalem  was  dear  to  him  for  the 
beauty  of  its  situation,  and  for  the  stirring  associations 
which  clustered  round  its  heights,  it  was  especially  sacred 
in  his  estimation  as  "  the  city  of  God." 

So  long,  therefore,  as  it  was  in  ruins,  and  its  Temple  lying 
waste,  Daniel  could  not  but  be  sad,  and,  deep  down  beneath 
all  other  desires  in  his  soul,  there  was  the  longing  for  the 
time  when  Jehovah  would  return  and  visit  "  the  vineyard 
which  his  right  hand  had  planted,  and  the  branch  which  he 
had  made  strong  for  himself."  In  the  time  of  his  worldly 
prosperity,  the  state  of  Jerusalem  was  ever  present  to  his 
mind  to  give  deep  shadings  to  his  happiness  ;  while,  in  the 
day  of  his  adversity,  the  tears  which  he  shed  over  his  own 
sorrows  were  not  so  bitter  as  those  which  he  wept  when  he 
remembered  Zion.  Even  amidst  the  splendors  of  Shushan, 
Nehemiah  had  great  "  sorrow  of  heart,"  when  he  heard  the 
tidings  which  his  kinsman  brought  concerning  "  the  city  of 
their  solemnities  ;"  and  we  do  not  wonder  that  Daniel  also 
was  greatly  exercised  about  the  condition  of  the  Jewish  peo- 


The  Seventy  Weeks.  165 

pie,  and  the  cause  of  God  with  which  they  were  so  identi- 
fied. These  subjects,  indeed,  were  never,  we  may  believe, 
entirely  absent  from  his  thoughts.  No  doubt  he  gave  him- 
self diligently  to  the  discharge  of  the  duties  of  his  office ; 
but  behind  his  usual  occupations,  and  forming,  so  to  say, 
the  inner  chamber  of  his  life,  to  which  in  moments  of  lei- 
sure he  constantly  retired,  was  the  great  question,  "  O  God, 
how  long  shall  the  adversary  reproach  ?  shall  the  enemy 
blaspheme  thy  name  forever  ?"* 

As  the  years  revolved  with,  to  mere  human  view,  no 
clearer  prospects  of  improvement,  the  burden  became  so 
heavy  that  he  gave  himself  to  special  prayer  for  the  city 
which  was  called  by  God's  name.  More  than  sixty  years 
had  gone  since  the  day  when,  as  a  boy,  he  had  been  taken 
from  Jerusalem  and  carried  off  to  Babylon.  The  burden 
of  fourscore  years  was  now  upon  him,  and  he  must  soon 
"  go  the  way  of  all  the  earth ;"  but  his  heart  was  yearning 
for  the  revival  of  God's  work,  which  to  him  centred  in  the 
recovery  of  their  own  land  by  the  chosen  people.  So  in  the 
first  year  of  Darius  he  devoted  a  season  to  fasting  and 
prayer,  for  the  coming  of  the  time  "  when  God  should  arise 
and  have  mercy  upon  Zion." 

It  is  interesting  to  mark  that  this  devotional  fervor  of 
Daniel  grew  out  of  his  study  of  the  Word  of  God.  Read- 
ing the  prophecies  of  Jeremiah,  he  found  such  passages  as 
these  :  "  This  whole  land  shall  be  a  desolation,  and  an  as- 
tonishment ;  and  these  nations  shall  serve  the  king  of  Bab- 
ylon seventy  years  ;"  and,  again,  "After  seventy  years  be 
accomplished  at  Babylon,  I  will  visit  you,  and  perform  my 
good  word  toward  you  in  causing  you  to  return  to  this 
place."!  Now,  as  he  had  been  himself  for  nearly  seventy 
years  a  captive,  he  felt  assured  that,  no  matter  from  what 

*  Psa.  Ixxiv.,  10.  t  Jer.  xxv.,  ii  ;  xxix.,  lo. 


i66  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

particular  time  the  beginning  of  the  Captivity  proper  might 
be  dated,  its  termination  was  drawing  near,  and  he  set  him- 
self to  pray  to  God  concerning  it.  At  first  sight,  this  seems 
strange.  God  gives  a  prediction  by  the  mouth  of  Jeremiah  ; 
Daniel  discovers  it,  and  believes  it,  and  then  prays  for  its 
fulfilment.  Could  he  not  have  left  God  to  accomplish  his 
own  prophecy,  without  troubling  him  with  any  prayer  ?  So 
reasons  the  man  who  believes  neither  in  God,  nor  in  proph- 
ecy, nor  in  prayer.  But  the  heart  of  the  child  has  an  in- 
stinct which  is  truer  than  all  logic,  and  when  he  gets  a  prom- 
ise he  turns  it  at  once  into  a  prayer.  Every  parent  knows 
how  true  that  is  in  his  intercourse  with  his  own  children,  for 
when  he  has  set  a  time  for  the  bestowment  of  a  particular 
gift,  the  nearer  the  day  approaches,  the  more  frequently  he 
is  reminded  of  his  pledge.  Can  that,  therefore,  be  ridicu- 
lous in  a  child  of  God  which  is  so  natural  and  so  touching 
in  our  own  offspring  ? 

Nor  let  any  one  imagine  that  in  pleading  for  the  fulfil- 
ment of  God's  prophecies  or  promises — for  every  promise 
13  a  species  of  prophecy — we  are  doing  an  unnecessary 
thing,  for  beneath  each  of  his  gracious  utterances  there  is 
this  condition,  "for  this  will  I  be  inquired  of  them  to  do  it 
for  them  ;"'  and  he  who  has  ordained  the  end  has  also  or- 
dained pra)^er  as  one  of  the  means  by  which  the  end  is  to 
be  gained.  Indeed,  God  was  beginning  to  fulfil  his  proph- 
ecy given  by  Jeremiah  when  he  stirred  up  Daniel  to  pray 
about  it ;  and  whensoever  we  see  a  spirit  of  supplication 
poured  out  upon  a  people,  we  may  take  that  as  an  indica- 
tion that  God  has  begun  to  prepare  them  for  receiving  the 
accomplishment  of  some  promise  of  blessing.  The  belief 
that  the  blessing  will  certainly  come  is  a  stimulus,  rather 
than  a  hinderance,  to  prayer.  When  I  receive  a  check 
from  a  fellow-man,  I  am  not  deterred  from  presenting  it  at 
the  bank  because  I  know  that  the  money  is  sure  to  be  forth- 


The  Seventy  AV^eeks.  167 

coming.  Nay,  I  am  only  thereby  the  more  encouraged  to 
take  it  and  turn  it  into  money.  But  the  same  thing  holds 
good  when  we  take  God's  promises  and  present  them  at 
the  throne  of  grace.  It  is  not  because  we  do  not  believe  in 
them  or  in  him  that  we  ask  for  their  fulfilment,  but  rather 
because  we  do  put  implicit  trust  in  them  both ;  and  the 
firmer  our  faith  is,  the  more  earnest  will  be  our  supplication. 

The  prayer  offered  by  Daniel  on  this  occasion  is  remark- 
able for  its  simplicity,  its  fervor,  and  its  appropriateness. 
Its  introductory  portion  consists  mainly  of  confession,  and 
in  that  exercise,  identifying  himself  with  the  nation  to  which 
he  belonged,  he  acknowledges  the  guilt  of  Israel  in  former 
days,  and  admits  the  justness  of  the  punishment  which  had 
been  inflicted  on  them  for  their  iniquities.  Then  referring 
to  that  great  primal  deliverance  from  Egypt  by  which  God 
manifested  his  special  interest  in  the  children  of  Abraham, 
he  pleads,  by  implication,  the  ancient  covenant,  and  earnest- 
ly begs  that  God  would  cause  his  face  to  shine  upon  his 
sanctuary.  He  is  careful,  also,  to  add  that  he  presents  his 
supplications,  not  on  the  ground  of  his  own  righteousness,  or 
that  of  the  people,  but  for  God's  great  mercies.  We  cannot 
but  be  struck  with  the  Scriptural  ground  on  which  this  prayer 
rests,  the  straightforward  honesty  by  which  its  confessions 
are  characterized,  the  utter  absence  of  self -righteousness 
by  which  it  is  distinguished,  and  the  fervent  importunity 
with  which  it  concludes  ;  but,  as  I  have  elsewhere  dwelt  on 
these  things,*  I  press  on  to  look  at  the  answer  which  was 
given  to  its  request. 

While  Daniel  was  engaged  in  his  devotions,  the  same 
celestial  one  who  had  explained  to  him  his  former  vision 
appeared  to  him,  and  informed  him  that  he  was  sent  to 
give  him  skill  and  understanding,  and  to  show  him  yet  more 


*  See  "  Prayer  and  Business,"  Randolph  &  Co.,  New  York. 


i68  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

fully  concerning  things  to  come,  because  he  was  a  "  man 
greatly  beloved."  Truly  "the  secret  of  the  Lord  is  with 
them  that  fear  him ;  and  he  will  show  them  his  covenant."* 
Herein  also  we  may  see  an  instance  of  the  fulfilment  of  the 
promise,  "  It  shall  come  to  pass,  that  before  they  call,  I  will 
answer ;  and  while  they  are  yet  speaking,  I  will  hear."t 
At  the  very  commencement  of  his  supplications  this  heav- 
enly messenger  was  commissioned  to  repair  to  him,  "  being 
caused  to  fly  swiftly,"  and  just  as  his  petitions  were  ended 
he  breaks  in  with  the  answer.  We  must  beware,  however, 
of  drawing  from  this  statement  inferences  which  it  will  not 
warrant.  It  does  not  imply,  either  that  the  angels  have 
wings,  and  move  through  space  by  flying,  or  that  the  whole 
time  during  which  Daniel  was  praying  was  required  by  Ga- 
briel for  coming  from  heaven  to  earth.  It  simply  means 
that  the  angel  came  promptly,  like  as  a  man  comes  who 
is  breathless  and  weary  with  quick  running.  But  that  he 
needed  all  this  time  to  pass  from  heaven  to  earth  I  do  not 
myself  suppose.  The  boundary  between  the  earthly  and 
the  heavenly  is  not  so  much  one  of  distance  as  of  nature. 
For  anything  that  we  can  tell,  the  spiritual  is  all  around  us. 
True,  we  teach  our  children  to  sing  of  the  "  happy  land  "  as 
"far,  far  away;"  but  I  have  never  been  able  to  accept  that 
representation  as  Scriptural ;  and  to  me  no  place  is  nearer 
than  the  realm  of  spirits.  I  cannot  cross  the  street  without 
taking  some  time  in  which  to  do  it,  but  I  may  be  with  God 
in  a  moment.  The  Christian  apostle  has  taught  us  that  "  to 
depart"  is  to  be  "with  Christ,"  and  that  absence  from  the 
body  is  presence  with  the  Lord.  So  it  is  not  distance  that 
separates  us  from  the  spirit  land.  Now,  if  these  principles 
be  just,  we  must  take  the  statement  here  as  figurative,  and 
regard  the  marks  as  if  of  haste,  which  Gabriel  bore,  as  de- 

*  Psa.  XXV.,  14.  t  Isa.  Ixv.,  24. 


The  Seventy  Weeks.  169 

signed  to  give  to  Daniel  the  assurance  that  God  was  deeply 
interested  in  him,  and  eager  to  relieve  his  anxiety.  At  least 
they  furnish  no  warrant  for  attempting,  as  some  have  done, 
to  calculate  the  distance  of  heaven  from  earth,  or  speculat- 
ing, as  others  have  done,  on  the  mode  in  which  the  minis- 
try of  angels  is  carried  on ;  for  everything  savoring  of  ma- 
terialism must  be  eliminated  from  our  consideration  of  such 
a  subject. 

The  great  thing  we  learn  here  is  the  reality  of  the  minis- 
try of  angels.  The  miracle  was  not  in  the  fact  that  Gabriel 
was  there,  but  rather  in  his  being  made  visible  to  Daniel ; 
just  as  when  Elisha  was  in  Dothan,  the  miracle  was  not  in 
the  presence  of  God's  hosts  round  about  the  prophet,  but  in 
the  opening  of  the  young  man's  eyes,  so  that  he  saw  them. 
God  commonly  employs  his  angels  as  his  messengers ;  and 
if  we  are  his  children,  and  the  heirs  of  his  salvation,  they 
have  often  ministered  to  us  when  we  knew  it  not ;  but  their 
help  was  not  the  less  real,  because  at  the  moment  of  their 
rendering  it  they  were  not  perceived  by  us.  In  a  home 
which  I  know  well,  a  mother,  before  retiring  for  the  night, 
went  her  rounds  through  the  bedrooms  of  her  children,  mak- 
ing them  comfortable  in  their  cots.  One  she  tucked  care- 
fully in  ;  another  she  lifted  and  made  more  easy  on  his  pil- 
low ;  a  third  she  cooled  by  throwing  off  the  heavy  coverlet 
by  which  she  was  oppressed ;  and  when  she  came  down 
again  to  her  own  chamber  she  said  to  her  husband,  "  Dear 
unconscious  ones  !  they  never  knew  that  I  was  near  them." 
But  her  ministry  w^as  real  and  beneficial,  notwithstanding 
their  unconsciousness.  So  it  is,  save  in  exceptional  cases, 
with  the  ministrations  of  those  angelic  attendants  whom 
God  has  commissioned  to  wait  upon  his  people.  They  gird 
us  when  we  know  it  not.  They  soothe  us  when  we  think 
not  of  it ;  and  as  on  the  other  side  of  the  veil,  they  give 
their  report  to  their  Master,  they  too  may  say,  "  Blessed 

8 


170  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

souls  !  they  did  not  know  that  we  had  been  near  them." 
How  much  God  is  always  doing  for  us  that  we  know  noth- 
ing of  at  the  moment !  And  among  these  unconscious  bless- 
ings that  we  are  always  receiving  at  his  hands,  I  number  the 
ministry  of  angels, 

"  O  the  exceeding  grace 
Of  highest  God,  that  loves  his  creatures  so, 
And  all  his  works  with  mercy  doth  embrace, 
That  blessed  angels  he  sends  to  and  fro 
To  serve  to  wicked  men,  to  serve  his  wicked  foe  ! 
How  oft  do  they  their  silken  bowers  leave, 
To  come  to  succor  us  that  succor  want ! 
How  oft  do  they  with  golden  pinions  cleave 
The  flitting  skies,  like  flying  pursuivant, 
Against  foul  fiends  to  aid  us  militant ! 
They  for  us  fight,  they  watch  and  duly  ward, 
And  their  bright  squadrons  round  about  us  plant ; 
And  all  for  love,  and  nothing  for  reward. 
Oh,  why  should  heavenly  God  to  man  have  such  regard  !''* 

But  we  must  look  now  at  the  new  revelation  made  to 
Daniel  by  Gabriel.  It  is  given  as  an  answer  to  his  prayer ; 
and  yet,  when  we  inspect  it  narrowly,  we  discover  that  the 
great  subject  of  his  anxiety  is  referred  to  in  it  only  by  im- 
plication. He  asked  about  God's  sanctuary,  and  the  reply 
refers  to  events  which  presuppose  that  the  Temple  must  be 
restored,  and  Jerusalem  rebuilt.  He  made  a  request  which 
was  founded  on  his  discovery  of  Jeremiah's  prediction  that 
the  Captivity  should  continue  seventy  years,  and  the  answer 
assures  him  that  for  the  one  seventy  in  exile,  there  should 
be  seven  seventies  of  continued  occupation  of  the  holy  city 
by  the  Jews.  It  is  plain,  therefore,  that  the  reference  of  the 
angel's  words  throughout  is  to  years.  The  "  heptades  "  are 
not  weeks  of  days  ;  but  as  Daniel  from  the  beginning  was 

*  Spenser. 


The   Seventy  Weeks. 


171 


exercised  about  the  seventy  years,  the  seventy  sevens  must 
be  understood  of  the  same  denomination.  We  are  not, 
therefore,  taking  a  day  for  a  year  when  we  interpret  these 
"heptades"  as  consisting  each  of  seven  years.  So  far  as 
we  have  been  able  to  discover,  the  day  for  a  year  theory,  as 
it  is  called,  has  no  foundation  in  the  Word  of  God,  and  we 
are  anxious,  at  the  outset  of  our  interpretation  of  this  pre- 
diction, to  guard  against  being  understood  as  indorsing  any 
such  fanciful  and  fictitious  views. 

In  the  words  of  Gabriel,  these  seventy  heptades  are 
spoken  of,  first,  generally;  then  he  gives  us  an  account  of 
certain  marked  epochs  in  them  ;  and  finally  he  presents  us 
with  a  foreshadowing  of  what  was  to  happen  at  their  close. 
Let  us  glance  a  little  at  each  of  these  divisions  of  the 
prophecy. 

The  first  is  given  in  the  twenty-fourth  verse  ;  but,  as  the 
English  reader  may  perceive,  from  the  unusual  number  of 
marginal  emendations,  that  it  is  difficult  to  render  the  origi- 
nal with  exactness,  it  may  be  well  to  give  the  rendering 
which  is  now  preferred  by  the  best  Hebrew  scholars.  I 
select  that  of  Dr.  Cowles.*  "  Seventy  sevens  [of  years]  are 
determined  in  reference  to  thy  people  and  thy  holy  city,  to 
shut  up  sin,  to  seal  transgression,  to  cover  iniquity,  to  bring 
in  everlasting  righteousness,  to  seal  up  vision  and  prophet, 
and  to  anoint  the  Holy  of  Holies."  The  phrases  "  to  shut  up 
sin,  to  seal  transgression,  to  cover  iniquity,"  describe  most 
appropriately  the  sacrificial  character  and  sanctifying  influ- 
ence of  the  death  of  Christ,  as  these  are  set  before  us  in  the 
New  Testament,  The  expressions  "  to  bring  in  everlasting 
righteousness,"  and  "to  seal  up  vision  and  prophet,"  refer, 
as  interpreted  by  the  fuller  light  of  the  apostolic  epistles,  to 
the  work  of  Christ  as  furnishing  his  people  with  an  everlast- 

*  "  Ezekiel  and  Daniel,  with  Note?,"  by  Henry  Cowl«s,  D.D.,  p.  401. 


172  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

ing  righteousness,  and  sealing  up,  by  fulfilling  the  proph- 
ecies of  God ;  for  "  the  testimony  of  Jesus  is  the  spirit  of 
prophecy."  The  anointing  of  the  Holy  of  Holies  is  by 
some  referred  to  the  purification  of  the  literal  Temple  by 
the  presence  in  it  of  Incarnate  God ;  but  to  me  it  seems 
rather  to  describe  the  descent  of  the  Holy  Spirit  on  the  Son 
of  God,  whose  body  was  called  by  himself  a  temple.  So 
far,  then,  as  this  verse  is  concerned,  it  declares  that  in  some 
way,  and  from  some  date,  four  hundred  and  ninety  years 
were  to  run  their  course  before  the  work  by  which  sin  should 
be  expiated  and  prophecy  fulfilled  would  be  performed. 

In  the  next  statement,  these  seventy  heptades  are  broken 
up  as  follows  :  "  Know  and  understand :  From  the  going 
forth  of  a  decree  for  restoring  and  rebuilding  Jerusalem 
unto  Messiah  the  Prince  are  seven  sevens,  and  sixty-and- 
two  sevens ;  the  streets  shall  be  restored,  and  built  again ; 
it  is  decided  and  shall  be,  though  in  distress  of  times." 
The  point  from  which  these  periods  of  seven  are  reckoned 
is  the  date  of  a  commandment  to  restore  and  rebuild  Jeru- 
salem. But  what  commandment  is  thus  referred  to  ?  It 
cannot  be  the  edict  of  Cyrus,*  or  its  repetition  by  Darius 
Hystaspis  ;t  for  these  had  respect  only  to  the  Temple,  and 
said  nothing  whatever  about  the  city.  There  remain,  how- 
ever, only  two  edicts  to  one  or  other  of  which  it  can  be  as- 
signed. These  are  the  commission  to  Ezra  in  the  seventh 
year  of  Artaxerxes  Longimanus  ;$  and  the  letter  to  Asaph,  the 
chief  forester,  given  in  Nehemiah,§  in  the  twentieth  year  of 
the  same  monarch.  It  is  true,  indeed,  that  the  commission  to 
Ezra  does  not  name  the  city,  but  it  implies  the  existence  of 
a  place  which  he  was  to  bring  under  civic  government ;  and 
so  this  may  very  well  be  taken  as  the  starting-point  for  these 


*  Ezra  i.,  1-4;  vi.,  3-5.  t  Ibid,  vi.,  1-12. 

t  Ibid,  vii.,  12--6.  §  Nell,  ii.,  8. 


The  Seventy  Weeks.  173 

seventy  heptades.  Now,  if  this  be  so,  forty-nine  years  are 
allowed  for  the  settlement  of  affairs  at  Jerusalem  ;  and  of 
these  we  can  account  for  thirteen  under  Ezra  and  twelve 
under  Nehemiah,  making  together  twenty- five.  But  after 
an  absence  of  nine  years,  Nehemiah  returned  to  Jerusalem 
toward  the  end  of  the  reign  of  Longimanus,  and  this  brings 
the  total  up  to  thirty-four.*  It  is,  moreover,  probable  that 
he  lived  for  fifteen  years  more,  for  he  mentions  Joiada  as 
high-priest  ;t  and  his  father  Eliashib  is  said  to  have  died 
in  the  eleventh  year  of  Darius  Nothus.  Now,  the  eleventh 
year  of  Darius  Nothus  was  forty -five  years  from  the  sev- 
enth of  Artaxerxes,  and  so  there  are  only  four  years  to  be 
accounted  ior.t  That  the  city  was  built  and  fortified  in 
"  troublous  times  "  is  abundantly  evident  from  the  record 
left  by  Nehemiah  himself.  So  far,  therefore,  there  is  a  very 
close  approximation  between  the  prediction  and  the  history. 
The  next  portion  of  the  prophecy  relates  to  the  interval 
between  the  reorganization  of  the  city  vmder  Nehemiah  and 
the  appearance  of  the  Messiah,  We  continue  to  give  it  in 
Dr.  Cowles's  version  :  "And  after  sixty-two  sevens,  Messiah 
shall  be  cut  ofif,  and  there  shall  be  nothing  more  to  him.§ 
Then  the  people  of  a  prince  that  shall  come  shall  destroy 
the  city  and  the  sanctuary ;  its  end  shall  be  with  that  sweep- 
ing flood ;  even  unto  the  end  of  the  war  desolations  are  de- 
termined.    One  seven  shall  make  the  covenant  effective  to 

*  See  Alexander's  "  Kitto's  Cyclopedia,"  vol.  iii.,  p.  307. 

t  Neh.  xiii.,  28, 

J  Pusey's  "Lectures  on  Daniel  the  Prophet," p.  174. 

§  The  translation  in  our  version,  "but  not  for  himself,"  makes  the 
words  mean  that  Messiah  died  for  the  sins  of  others,  and  not  for  his 
own.  This  is  a  truth,  but  it  is  not  the  truth  taught  here.  The  words 
imply  "  there  is  nothing  more  to  him  with  them."  The  people  reject 
him,  and  he  rejects  them.  We  cannot,  therefore,  quote  this  as  a  proof 
text  for  vicarious  atonement,  though  that  doctrine  is  implied  in  some  of 
the  other  clauses  of  this  passage. 


174  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

many.  The  middle  of  the  seven  shall  make  sacrifice  and 
offerings  cease  :  then  down  upon  the  summit  of  the  abomi- 
nation comes  the  desolator,  even  till  a  complete  destruction, 
determined,  shall  be  poured  upon  the  desolate."  Here  it 
will  be  convenient  to  go  back  to  the  date  of  the  edict  of 
Artaxerxes,  in  the  seventh  year  of  his  reign.  That,  ac- 
cording to  Pusey,  corresponds  with  457  B.C.  So,  calculat- 
ing sixty -nine  sevens,  or  four  hundred  and  eighty -three 
years  from  that  date,  we  come  to  the  year  26  a.d.  But  it  is 
well  known  by  those  acquainted  with  chronology  that  Christ 
was  born  four  years  earlier  than  the  first  of  the  era  which 
we  call  by  his  name.  Therefore,  at  the  year  26  a.d.,  our 
Lord  would  be  really  thirty  years  of  age ;  and  we  know* 
that  his  baptism,  or  public  manifestation  to  the  people,  took 
place  when  he  began  to  be  about  thirty  years  of  age. 

Further,  at  the  end  of  half  a  seven  of  years,  or  in  the 
middle  of  the  heptade,  I^.Iessiah,  according  to  this  predic- 
tion, was  to  cause  the  sacriiice  and  offerings  to  cease.  Now, 
if  we  suppose  this  to  refer  to  the  fact  that  Christ's  death, 
being  a  real  and  proper  sacrifice  for  sin,  virtually  abolished 
all  those  under  the  law,  which  were  only  typical,  we  have 
here  a  date  harmonizing  with  that  of  the  Crucifixion.  It  is 
as  near  as  possible  demonstrable  from  the  Gospel  by  John 
that  our  Saviour's  public  ministry  lasted  three  years  and  a 
half  ;t  and  this  is  corroborated  by  the  parable  of  the  bar- 
ren fig-tree, $  which  seems  to  indicate  that  three  years  of 
special  privilege  for  the  Jews  had  run  their  course,  and  that 
a  fourth,  or  a  portion  of  a  fourth,  was  to  be  given  to  them. 
Here  again,  therefore,  we  have  a  coincidence  of  date  be- 
tween the  prediction  and  the  history.  The  Messiah  was 
cut  off  in  the  midst  of  the  heptade. 

*  Luke  iii.,  23. 

t  See  Robinson's  "  Harmony  of  the  Gospels,"  Appendix,  p.  199. 

J  Luke  xiii.,6-9. 


The  Seventy  Weeks.  175 

Still  again  it  is  said,  "  One  seven  shall  make  the  covenant 
effective  to  many."  During  the  first  half  of  this  period, 
as  we  have  seen,  our  Lord's  personal  ministry  continued. 
He  was  then  and  thereby  confirming  the  covenant  to  as 
many  as  received  him.  But  the  people  as  a  whole  would 
not  receive  him:  "there  was  nothing  to  him;"  and  the  re- 
maining three  and  a  half  years  probably  mark  the  time 
during  which  the  Gospel  was  preached  to  the  Jews  after 
Christ's  resurrection,  before  the  conversion  of  the  Gentiles 
showed  that  the  special  privileges  of  the  Jews  were  at  an 
end. 

Finally,  we  have  here  a  very  distinct  indication  of  the 
overthrow  of  Jerusalem  by  the  Romans.  This  follows  upon 
the  rejection  of  the  Messiah  by  the  people  of  his  own  na- 
tion, and  is  connected  with  it  here ;  not  because  it  was  to 
come  immediately  after  it  in  time,  but  because  it  was  to  be 
a  part,  at  least,  of  the  punishment  of  those  national  sins 
which  culminated  in  the  crucifixion  of  the  Lord  of  Glory. 
"The  connection,"  says  Pusey,*  "  is  not  of  time,  but  of  cause 
and  effect.  Some  forty  years  were  allowed  in  which  indi- 
viduals might  save  themselves  from  that  untoward  genera- 
tion. But  the  doom  of  the  whole  was  fixed.  They  had  pro- 
nounced upon  themselves  their  sentence,  "  We  have  no  King 
but  Ccesar."  Our  Lord,  in  that  tender  mourning  over  Jeru- 
salem, pronounced  that  its  day  was  past.  "  If  thou  hadst 
known,  even  thou,  at  least  in  this  thy  day,  the  things  which 
belong  unto  thy  peace !  but  now  they  are  hid  from  thine 
eyes.  For  the  days  shall  come  upon  thee,  that  thine  ene- 
mies shall  cast  a  trench  about  thee,  and  compass  thee 
round,  and  keep  thee  in  on  every  side,  and  shall  lay  thee 
even  with  the  ground,  and  thy  children  within  thee ;  and 
they  shall  not  leave  in  thee  one  stone  upon  another ;  be- 

*  "  Lectures  on  Daniel  the  Prophet,"  p.  i8S. 


176  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

cause  thou  knewest  not  the  time  of  thy  visitation."*  Thus 
has  the  Saviour  ampUfied  in  his  prediction  what  Daniel  has 
here  outHned,  and  every  reader  of  Josephus  knows  how  fully 
and  how  fatally  both  prophecies  were  verified. 

The  exposition  which  we  have  given  of  this  section  of 
Daniel's  predictions,  and  of  the  manner  of  its  fulfilment,  is 
fitted  to  stir  the  heart  even  of  the  most  indifferent.  For 
myself,  I  feel  awed  by  the  sense  of  the  nearness  of  God, 
which  comes  over  me  when  I  read  these  verses,  and  remem- 
ber how  they  have  been  confirmed  by  the  events  of  which 
Calvary  was  the  scene. f  God  is  in  this  history  of  a  truth. 
But  let  us  not  forget  that  it  differs  from  ordinary  history 
only  in  the  fact  that  here  we  are  permitted  to  read  out  of 
the  book  of  the  divine  purpose  and  prescience ;  while  in 
other  cases  that  record  is  hidden  from  our  eyes.  God  ls  in 
ALL  HISTORY  as  really,  and  as  much,  as  he  was  in  this.  How 
solemn,  yet  how  reassuring  also,  is  the  thought !  "  The 
Lord  reigneth !  let  the  earth  rejoice,  and  the  multitude  of 
the  isles  be  glad  thereof." 

But  God  is  in  this  book  as  really  as  he  is  in  histor}\ 
Here  is  an  arch  spanning  the  gulf  of  half  a  millennium. 
Who  built  it  ?  Such  a  structure  it  is  beyond  the  skill  of 
human  architecture  to  plan,  and  the  might  of  human  engi- 
neering to  construct.  You  cannot  account  for  its  existence 
without  admitting  that  it  is  the  production  of  God.  We  can 
clearly  trace  this  portion  of  Daniel  to  a  date  long  before  the 

*  Luke  xix.,  42-44. 

t  This  fulfilment  is  in  no  degree  less  marvellous,  even  if  we  accept 
(which  we  are  by  no  means  disposed  to  do)  the  era  of  the  Maccabees  as 
the  date  of  the  Book  of  Daniel.  There  is  no  evading  the  force  of  this 
prophecy  in  that  way ;  for  we  have  evidence  of  the  existence  of  this 
prediction  when  the  Greek  version  of  the  Old  Testament  was  made,  and 
that  is  quite  enough  to  prove  that  it  could  not  have  been  a  human  in- 
vention. 


The  Seventy  Weeks.  177 

birth  of  Christ.  It  was  a  well-known  prophecy  among  the 
Jews,  and  they  began  to  cavil  at  its  genuineness  and  authen- 
ticity only  when  they  found  that,  fairly  interpreted,  it  pointed 
to  Jesus  of  Nazareth  as  the  promised  Messiah.  Its  struct- 
ure is  not  such  as  a  pretender  to  prescience  would  be  likely 
to  adojDt ;  for  there  is  nothing  so  perilous  for  a  false  prophet 
as  to  attempt  in  any  way  to  fix  the  date  of  the  event  which 
he  affects  to  foretell. 

Again,  the  facts  by  which  it  was  fulfilled  were  mainly  such 
as  could  not  have  been  manipulated  for  the  purpose  of  its 
accomplishment.  The  Crucifixion,  for  example,  was  an  event 
which  could  not  have  been  planned  beforehand  by  impos- 
tors who  wanted  to  make  it  appear  that  they  were  fulfilling 
a  prophecy;  }-et  by  it,  in  a  wonderful  v/ay  —  unthought  of 
even  by  Christ's  own  followers  at  the  time  —  the  sacrifices 
and  offerings  were  made  to  cease.  We  must  say,  therefore, 
of  this  prediction,  as  the  magicians  said  to  Moses  when  their 
enchantments  were  at  fault,  "  This  is  the  finger  of  God !" 

But  this  prophecy  does  not  stand  alone.  It  is  one  of  a 
series,  the  members  of  which  are  indissolubly  connected, 
and  must  stand  or  fall  together.  Thus  it  gives  support  to 
the  whole  revelation  of  which  it  forms  a  part ;  and  is  itself 
a  supernatural  fact  which  laughs  to  scorn  all  the  arguments 
of  that  sceptical  philosophy  which  presumes  to  say  that  the 
supernatural  is  impossible.  No  hypothesis  can  stand  before 
a  certainly  established  fact  that  contradicts  it.  Here,  then, 
in  the  fact  of  this  prediction,  known  and  acknowledged  as  in 
existence  for  at  least  two  hundred  years  before  the  events 
by  which  it  was  fulfilled,  we  have  something  superhuman. 
No  sagacious  forethought,  no  shrewdness  in  guessing  at 
what  is  in  the  future,  will  explain  this.  It  is  either  inexpli- 
cable, or  it  is  divine  ;  and  we  need  not  adopt  the  alterna- 
tive that  it  is  inexplicable  when  the  other  fully  fits  into  and 
explains  all  the  facts  of  the  case.     I  am  the  more  particu- 

7* 


178  Daniel  the  Beloved, 

lar  to  insist  on  this,  because,  in  recent  controversies  about 
the  possibility  of  miracles,  I  do  not  think  that  enough  has 
been  made  by  Christian  apologists  of  the  fact  of  prophecy. 
What  need  is  there  to  argue  an  a  priori  question  in  the 
presence  of  a  fact  ?  Let  our  sceptical  apostles  of  "  modern 
thought''  explain  on  natural  principles  such  facts  as  the  ex- 
istence of  this  prophecy  and  its  fulfilment,  and  it  will  be 
something  to  the  purpose.  Is  not  the  great  principle  of  the 
inductive  philosophy  something  to  this  effect — "that  noth- 
ing which  claims  to  rest  on  actual  fact  is  to  be  rejected  on'  f  «v 
examination?"  And  is  it  not  an  axiom  in  science  "that  q  5 
nothing  shall  be  accepted  as  a  cause  which  is  not  adequate 
to  produce  the  effect  that  is  attributed  to  it  ?"  Let  these 
principles  be  applied  to  the  facts  brought  out  to-night,  and 
I  think  that  every  candid  inquirer  will  be  led  to  the  admis- 
sion that  God  is  here  of  a  truth. 

Finally,  we  may  see  in  this  prophecy,  written  as  with  a 
sunbeam,  this  other  truth,  that  God  is  in  Christ.  The  lines 
of  prophecy  coming  from  many  quarters,  and  given  at  dif- 
ferent times,  all  converge  toward  and  meet  in  Jesus  of  Naz- 
areth, designating  him  as  both  Lord  and  Christ.  The  well- 
known  words  of  Micah  point  out  his  birthplace ;  many  ut- 
terances made  to  David,  and  through  him,  indicate  his  par- 
entage ;  the  marvellous  oracle  of  Isaiah  regarding  "  the  Ser- 
vant of  the  Lord  "  details  the  manner  of  his  life,  and  the  char- 
acter of  his  death  ;  and  here  in  the  prediction  of  the  seventy 
heptades,  dates,  the  most  crucial  of  tests,  are  given.  Now 
all  these  fit  precisely  into  his  history,  even  as  in  an  old-fash- 
ioned indenture,  the  edges  of  the  upper  portion  correspond 
in  every  minute  particular  to  those  of  the  lower.  Were 
there  no  other  predictions  than  these,  they  would  be  enough 
to  mark  him  out  as  the  Great  Deliverer.  But  when  we 
have,  in  addition,  a  multitude  of  others,  all  fulfilled  in  him, 
why  should  we  hesitate  for  a  moment  about  receiving  him  ? 


I 


The  Seventy  Weeks.  179 


Be  sure  that,  in  believing  on  Jesus,^dd.  are  following  no 
cunningly  devised  fable ;  but  are  bedpning  the  disciples  of 
him  to  whom  God  has  pointed,  by  the  finger  of  Moses  and 
David,  and  Isaiah  and  Jeremiah,  and  Micah  and  Daniel,  as 
well  as  by  that  of  John  the  Baptist,  saying,  "  Behold  the 
Lamb  of  God,  which  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world  !"  In 
building  on  this  foundation,  you  are  not  laying  stones  on 
a  quicksand,  in  which  they  disappear  as  soon  as  you  have 
placed  them,  but  you  are  resting  them  on  the  immovable 
Rock  of  Ages.  In  venturing  on  this  bridge,  you  are  not 
trusting  yourself  to  a  tiny  plank  which  will  break  beneath 
your  weight,  but  you  are  treading  on  a  structure  stable  as 
the  throne  of  God  itself.  "  God  is  in  Christ,  reconciling 
the  world  unto  himself ;  not  imputing  their  trespasses  unto 
them."  Salvation  comes  through  confidence  in  him,  and 
loyalty  to  him.  But  remember  that  it  is  death  to  reject 
him.  He  who  spared  not  the  people  of  his  choice,  and  the 
city  of  his  habitation,  but  delivered  them  up  to  destruction 
for  their  unbelief,  will  not  spare  you.  Thus  alike  the  good- 
ness and  the  severity  of  God  call  upon  us  anew  to-night  to 
repent  and  return  to  him  :  his  goodness  in  sending  the  Mes- 
siah to  take  away  sin  by  the  sacrifice  of  himself;  and  his 
severity  in  punishing  the  Jews  for  their  neglect  of  the  great 
salvation.  Let  not  the  call  be  unheeded  by  us.  Rarely 
have  I  felt  the  strength  of  the  foundation  on  which,  as  a 
minister  of  the  Gospel,  I  stand,  as  I  do  at  this  moment.  If 
Christ  is  not  certainly  the  Son  of  God,  then  there  is  no  cer- 
tainty. If  this  is  not  proof  that  he  is  the  author  of  ever- 
lasting salvation  to  all  them  that  obey  him,  then  all  proof  is 
impossible.  I  repeat,  therefore,  with  a  firmer  emphasis,  and 
a  stronger  assurance  than  ever,  the  precious  words,  "  This  is 
a  faithful  saying,  and  worthy  of  all  acceptation,  that  Christ 
Jesus  came  into  the  world  to  save  sinners,"  But  as  I  think 
of  old  Jerusalem,  and  see  the  Roman  eagle  shining  in  the 


i8o  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

lurid  light  of  the  conflagration  that  is  consuming  the  Tem- 
ple on  Moriah,  I  am  constrained  to  add,  "  Because  of  unbe- 
lief, they  were  broken  off ;  and  thou  standest  by  faith.  Be 
not  high-minded,  but  fear  ;  for  if  God  spared  not  the  natural 
branches,  take  heed  lest  he  also  spare  not  thee." 


XI. 

THE   VISION  ON  THE  BANKS   OF  THE   HID- 

DEKEI. 

Daniel  x.,  xi. 

THE  law  of  gradual  development  seems  to  pervade  the 
government  of  God,  and  may  be  traced  alike  in  the 
material  and  spiritual  departments  of  his  administration. 
The  earth  was  not  called  into  existence  precisely  as  it  now 
is,  but  was  prepared  by  a  long  series  of  progressive  changes 
for  the  abode  of  the  human  race.  The  stalk  of  ripened 
grain  does  not  spring  up  in  a  moment  from  the  corn  of 
wheat  planted  in  the  soil,  but  there  is  first  the  blade,  then 
the  ear,  and  then  the  full  corn  in  the  ear.  The  tidal  wave 
does  not  sweep  in  ujxDn  the  shore  all  at  once ;  but  it  flows 
in  steadily  increasing  strength,  until  its  height  is  reached. 
The  man  does  not  come  into  the  world  full-grown,  as  it  was 
fabled  that  Minerva  sprung  from  the  brain  of  Jupiter;  but 
he  is  first  an  infant,  then  a  child,  then  a  youth,  and  so  from 
hour  to  hour  he  ''  ripes  "  into  maturity.  So  the  revelation 
which  God  has  given  to  men  has  grown  into  its  complete- 
ness. The  primal  promise  to  our  common  parents  in  para- 
dise was  the  first  faint  ray  that  emanated  from  the  coming 
Sun  of  Righteousness ;  but  as  the  morning  of  the  race  wore 
on,  that  solitary  beam  expanded,  through  the  Abrahamic 
covenant,  the  Mosaic  economy,  and  the  prophetic  writings, 
until  at  length,  foreheralded  by  the  Baptist  as  the  morning- 
star,  the  divine  luminary  arose  "  with  healing  under  his 
wines." 


i82  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

But  what  was  thus  characteristic  of  revelation  as  a  whole 
is  equally  apparent  in  the  communications  made  to  individ- 
ual prophets ;  and  just  as,  to-day,  we  measure  our  growth 
by  the  increase  in  our  understanding  and  appreciation  of 
their  words,  so  they  themselves  attained  their  altitudes  of 
spiritual  perception  by  degrees,  and  their  loftiest  peak  was 
also  their  last.  In  none  of  them  all  is  this  more  conspicu- 
ous than  in  Daniel.  While  he  was  yet  a  youth  he  received, 
in  connection  with  the  dream  of  Nebuchadnezzar,  a  vision 
of  the  four  monarchies,  and  the  great  spiritual  kingdom  of 
the  Son  of  man,  by  which  they  were  to  be  destroyed.  Defi- 
nite in  its  great  outstanding  features,  that  prophecy  was 
meagre  in  details.  But  in  the  later  visions  which  were  given 
to  the  prophet  himself,  the  outline  of  the  royal  dream  was 
filled  in,  at  first  with  some  leading  events  in  the  history  of 
the  world,  and  latterly  with  the  particular  details  of  a  critical 
period  in  the  experience  of  the  Jewish  people.  The  vision 
of  the  four  beasts  is  an  amplification  of  the  interpretation 
of  Nebuchadnezzar's  dream  ;  while  again  the  account  of  the 
conflicts  between  the  ram  and  the  he-goat,  with  the  appen- 
dix concerning  the  little  horn,  is  a  supplement  to  the  de- 
scription of  the  four  beasts  ;  and  the  prophecy  of  the  seven- 
ty heptades  gives  definiteness  to  the  time  of  the  appearing 
of  him  who  in  the  one  case  is  represented  as  a  stone  cut 
out  of  the  mountain  without  hands,  and  in  the  other  is 
spoken  of  as  the  Son  of  man  who  received  a  kingdom  from 
the  Ancient  of  Days. 

Once  more,  the  vision  which  Daniel  received  "  by  the  side 
of  the  great  river,  the  Hiddekel,"  and  which  is  contained  in 
the  eleventh  chapter,  soon  to  be  considered,  is  an  expan- 
sion of  that  described  in  the  eighth  chapter  into  such  ful- 
ness of  incident  that  it  reads  almost  like  a  history  of  the 
times  to  which  it  refers.  As  the  vision  of  the  seventh  chap- 
ter is  to  that  of  the  second,  so  is  that  of  the  eleventh  to 


The  Vision  on  the  Banks  of  the  Hiddekel.    183 

that  of  the  eighth.  Thus  these  prophecies  lead  us  from  a 
general  summary  of  the  future  as  a  whole  into  minute  par- 
ticulars of  special  chapters  in  the  history  of  the  peculiar 
people ;  and  by  so  much  the  more  detailed  their  statements 
are,  by  so  much  the  stronger  is  the  proof  which  their  fulfil- 
ment furnishes  of  the  divine  origin  of  the  communications 
which  Daniel  received.  In  the  drawing  of  a  map,  the 
scholar  begins  with  the  outline  of  the  country,  and  seeks  to 
define  its  boundaries ;  then  he  puts  in  its  physical  features 
of  mountain-ranges  and  rivers  ;  then  he  marks  out  its  divis- 
ions into  states  and  counties ;  and  then  he  inserts  the  prin- 
cipal towns.  Each  new  stage  in  his  progress  thus  increases 
his  liability  to  err,  and  is  therefore  a  more  searching  test  of 
the  accuracy  and  extent  of  his  knowledge  than  that  which 
went  before  it.  So  Daniel,  in  this  wonderful  series  of  pre- 
dictions, goes  on  from  the  general  to  the  particular,  and 
brings  in  at  every  step  new  details  by  which  his  accuracy 
may  be  tested,  and  by  which,  if  his  writings  stand  the  ordeal 
which  they  have  themselves  prepared,  his  inspiration  may 
be  abundantly  established. 

The  latest  of  his  visions  is  contained,  for  the  most  part, 
in  the  eleventh  chapter  of  his  book ;  the  tenth  being  what 
Auberlen  has  well  styled  the  prologue,  and  the  twelfth  what 
the  same  suggestive  author  has  called  the  epilogue.  For 
the  present  we  must  confine  our  attention  to  the  two  former, 
and  even  in  our  consideration  of  them  it  will  be  impossible 
to  give  more  than  the  merest  outline  of  their  contents,  with 
an  indication  of  their  fulfilment  in  the  pages  of  the  secular 
historians  who  have  described  the  events  to  which  they  refer. 

The  date  of  this  revelation  was  the  third  year  of  Cyrus, 
King  of  Persia.  This  corresponds  with  the  seventy-third 
year  of  Daniel's  own  captivity ;  so  that  if  we  were  correct  in 
our  conjecture  that  he  was  a  boy  of  fourteen  years  of  age 
when  he  was  taken  to  Babylon,  he  must  have  been  fourscore 


184  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

and  seven  years  old  at  the  time  when  this  "  thing  "  was  re- 
vealed to  him.  This,  therefore,  is  the  latest  communication 
which  he  gave  to  his  people,  and  the  last  glimpse  which  we 
get  of  himself.  He  had  not  set  out,  probably  on  account  of 
his  extreme  old  age,  with  the  exiles  who  returned  to  Jerusa- 
lem after  the  issuing  of  the  edict  of  Cyrus.  Perhaps,  also, 
he  felt  that  he  might  be  of  more  service  to  Zerubbabel  and 
his  companions  by  remaining  at  the  seat  of  the  imperial 
government  than  he  could  have  been  by  accompanying  them 
to  the  Holy  City.  At  least,  we  do  not  hear  of  his  having 
gone  to  them ;  and  the  testimony  of  tradition  is  that  he  died 
in  Shushan,  where  a  monument  which  Benjamin  of  Tudela 
reports  that  he  saw  in  front  of  one  of  the  Jewish  syna- 
gogues was  said  to  have  been  erected  to  his  memory. 

He  was  at  this  time  by  the  side  of  the  great  river,  the 
Hiddekel,  or  Tigris,  and  gave  himself  up  to  earnest  prayer 
to  God,  accompanied  with  marks  of  humiliation  and  sorrow. 
In  his  own  words,  he  "  was  mourning  three  full  weeks,  he  ate 
no  pleasant  bread,  neither  came  flesh  nor  wine  in  his  mouth, 
neither  did  he  anoint  himself  at  all,  till  three  whole  weeks 
were  fulfilled."  Now,  a  question  arises  as  to  the  cause  of 
this  grief  on  the  part  of  the  prophet,  and  we  find  the  prob- 
able answer  in  the  fact  that  unexpected  difficulties  had 
arisen  before  those  who  had  gone  to  Jerusalem,  so  that  they 
were  discouraged  and  well  -  nigh  hopeless.  The  state  of 
matters  is  described  by  Ezra*  thus  :  "  Now  when  the  adver- 
saries of  Judah  and  Benjamin  heard  that  the  children  of  the 
captivity  builded  the  temple  unto  the  Lord  God  of  Israel ; 
then  they  came  to  Zerubbabel,  and  to  the  chief  of  the  fa- 
thers, and  said  unto  them.  Let  us  build  with  you :  for  we 
seek  your  God,  as  ye  do  ;  and  we  do  sacrifice  unto  him 
since  the  days  of  Esar-haddon  king  of  Assur,  which  brought 

*  Ezra  iv.,  1-5. 


The  Vision  on  the  Banks  of  the  Hiddekel.    185 

us  up  hither.  But  Zerubbabel,  and  Jeshua,  and  the  rest  of 
the  chief  of  the  fathers  of  Israel,  said  unto  them,  Ye  have 
nothing  to  do  with  us  to  build  a  house  unto  our  God ;  but 
we  ourselves  together  will  build  unto  the  Lord  God  of  Is- 
rael, as  king  Cyrus  the  king  of  Persia  hath  commanded  us. 
Then  the  people  of  the  land  weakened  the  hands  of  the 
people  of  Judah,  and  troubled  them  in  building,  and  hired 
counsellors  against  them,  to  frustrate  their  purpose,  all  the 
days  of  Cyrus  king  of  Persia,  even  until  the  reign  of  Darius 
king  of  Persia."  Now,  remembering  what  we  said  in  our 
last  discourse  concerning  the  interest,  not  patriotic  only,  but 
pious,  which  the  Jews  had  in  their  city  and  Temple,  and  the 
deep  concern  which  Daniel  had  for  the  cause  with  which  the 
chosen  people  were  identified,  we  have  no  difficulty  in  be- 
lieving that  the  arrival  at  Shushan  of  the  counsellors  hired 
by  the  adversaries  to  frustrate  the  purpose  of  the  returned 
exiles,  was  the  occasion  of  that  sadness  which  prompted 
Daniel  to  the  fasting  which  he  has  so  minutely  described. 

At  the  end  of  his  three  weeks'  mourning  and  supplication, 
he  was  blessed  with  the  vision  of  "  a  certain  man  clothed 
in  linen,  whose  loins  were  girded  with  fine  gold  of  Uphaz ; 
his  body  also  was  like  the  beryl,  and  his  face  as  the  appear- 
ance of  lightning,  and  his  eyes  as  lamps  of  fire,  and  his  arms 
and  his  feet  like  in  color  to  polished  brass,  and  the  voice  of 
his  words  like  the  voice  of  a  multitude."  This  description, 
according  as  it  does  in  almost  every  particular  with  that 
given  by  John  of  Him  who  appeared  in  Patmos,  and  called 
himself  "Alpha  and  Omega,  the  first  and  the  last,"*  leads 
us  to  conclude  that  the  mysterious  stranger  was  none  other 
than  the  Son  of  man,  to  whom,  in  Daniel's  former  vision, 
the  kingdom  had  been  given  by  the  Ancient  of  Days,  and  at 
whose  girdle  John  saw  the  keys  of  Hades  and  of  Death. 

*  See  Rev.  i.,  10-16. 


i86  Daniel  the  Beloved, 

As  in  the  case  of  Paul  journeying  to  Damascus,  the  men 
who  accompanied  him  heard  a  voice,  but  saw  no  man,  though 
the  Lord  appeared  to  him  in  the  way,  so  this  celestial  one 
was  visible  to  Daniel,  and  not  to  those  who  were  with  him ; 
though  it  is  probable  that  they  heard  the  sound  of  one 
speaking,  and  that  may  explain  why  "  a  great  quaking  fell 
upon  them,  so  that  they  fled  to  hide  themselves." 

Thus  the  prophet  was  left  alone,  looking  on  the  great  vi- 
sion, until  "  there  remained  no  strength  in  him,"  and  he  sunk 
into  a  deep  sleep,  with  his  face  toward  the  earth.  Out  of 
this  unconsciousness  he  was  roused  by  the  voice  which  was 
like  the  voice  of  a  multitude,  and  the  hand  of  a  heavenly 
one  touched  him,  and  lifted  him  upon  his  knees  and  the 
palms  of  his  hands.  Then,  as  he  stood  trembling,  in  spite 
of  the  soothing  ministrations  of  the  spiritual  attendant,  he 
heard  these  words  :  "  Fear  not,  Daniel :  for  from  the  first 
day  that  thou  didst  set  thine  heart  to  understand,  and  to 
chasten  thyself  before  thy  God,  thy  words  were  heard,  and 
I  am  come  for  thy  words.  But  the  prince  of  the  kingdom 
of  Persia  withstood  me  one -and -twenty  days:  but,  lo,  Mi- 
chael, one  of  the  chief  princes,  came  to  help  me ;  and  I  re- 
mained there  with  the  kings  of  Persia.  Now  I  am  come  to 
make  thee  understand  what  shall  befall  thy  people  in  the 
latter  days  :  for  yet  the  vision  is  for  many  days."*  This 
prince  of  the  kingdom  of  Persia  is  evidently  not  a  man,  but 
an  evil  angel,  who  may  be  supposed  to  have  received  from 
the  Prince  of  Darkness  the  special  commission  to  foster  the 
bad  influences  in  the  Persian  Empire,  and,  if  possible,  to 
thwart  and  overturn  the  purpose  of  God  concerning  it.  In 
his  character  and  actions,  he  is  the  adversary  both  of  the  good 
angel  who  is  here  conversing  with  Daniel,  and  of  ]\Iichael, 
the  archangel,  who  had  come  to  the  assistance  of  his  subor- 

*  Dan.  X.,  12-14. 


The  Vision  on  the  Banks  of  the  Hiddekel.    187 

dinate.  We  thus  learn  that  among  the  hosts  of  God  there 
are  gradations  in  rank  and  influence,  and  that  angels  are 
put  by  the  Lord  in  charge  of  the  nations.  It  would  seem 
also  that  Satan  has  employed  some  of  his  subtlest  and  most 
powerful  spiritual  agents  in  working  among  the  governments 
of  earth  to  counteract  and,  if  possible,  to  neutralize  and  over- 
come, the  efforts  of  the  good  angels  to  advance  the  welfare 
of  the  human  race  and  the  glory  of  God. 

In  other  portions  of  the  Word  of  God  we  find  language 
employed  which  warrants  the  belief  that  individual  saints 
have  their  guardian  angels  ;*  and  in  our  last  lecture  we 
found  one  such  angel  in  attendance  upon  Daniel ;  but  if  we 
admit  that  these  spiritual  beings  may  influence  the  affairs 
of  men  as  units,  there  is  nothing  unreasonable  in  recogniz- 
ing that  their  ministry  affects  also  the  history  and  destiny 
of  nations.  Accordingly,  we  find  mention  in  this  chapter  of 
a  good  angel,  who  had  the  care  of  God's  people.  Over  him, 
and  apparently  at  the  head  of  those  who  were  employed  in 
similar  services,  was  Michael,  who  is  elsewhere  called  the 
Archangel,!  and  who  is  ready  to  come  with  assistance  in  all 
moments  of  emergency.  Against  these,  Satan  and  his  legions 
wage  ceaseless  war ;  and  reference  is  made  here  to  two  of 
his  subordinate  agents — the  one  named  the  Prince  of  Persia, 
because  his  mission  was  to  thwart  all  movements  tending  to 
the  prosperity  of  the  Jews  in  that  empire ;  and  the  other 
styled  the  Prince  of  Grecia,t  because,  with  the  same  object 
in  view,  his  attention  was  confined  to  the  realm  of  Greece. 
It  was  natural,  therefore,  that  the  good  angel,  who  might  be 
regarded  as  the  guardian  of  his  nation,  should  be  sent  to 
Daniel  at  this  time  to  give  him  this  revelation.  He  had  just 
been  engaged  in  the  very  matters  affecting  the  interests  of 

*  Matt,  xviii.,  lo.  t  Dan.  xii.,  i ;  Jude  9  ;  Rev.  xii.,  7. 

t  Dan.  X.,  20. 


1 88  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

those  who  had  gone  back  to  Jerusalem  which  had  furnished 
the  occasion  of  Daniel's  special  humiliation  and  prayer ; 
and  the  words  which  he  drops,  as  it  were,  incidentally,  in 
explanation  of  the  tardiness  of  his  appearance,  give  to  the 
venerable  man  of  God  the  assurance  that,  though  for  a  sea- 
son evil  counsels  would  prevail  with  the  Persian  monarch, 
to  the  delay  of  the  work  which  had  been  commenced  in  the 
Holy  City,  yet  ultimately  the  interests  of  the  returned  exiles 
would  be  cared  for,  and  their  desires  fulfilled.  As  Auber- 
len  says,  "  He  lets  the  prophet  catch  a  glimpse  of  the  invis- 
ible struggles  between  the  princes  of  the  angels,  in  which  it 
is  decided  who  is  to  exert  the  determining  influence  on  the 
worldly  monarch:  whether  the  God -opposing  spirit  of  the 
world,  or  the  good  spirit  whose  aim  it  is  to  further  the  in- 
terests of  God's  kingdom.  We  are  wont  to  speak  in  a  spir- 
itualizing way  of  a  struggle  between  the  good  and  the  evil 
spirit  in  man,  and  Holy  Scripture  teaches  us  to  regard  such 
a  struggle  as  real  and  substantial.  But  the  angelic  influ- 
ences, of  which  we  have  more  particular  knowledge  through 
the  language  of  Jesus  and  his  apostles,  are  not  essentially 
different  from  this.  The  liberty  of  human  actions  is  not 
hereby  taken  away,  for  the  spirits  exercise  no  compelling 
influence  on  men's  hearts,  and  their  chief  activity  consists 
probably  in  the  arrangement  of  outward  events.  The  ques- 
tion about  the  relation  of  the  Divine  government  to  human 
liberty  rather  loses,  than  gains,  in  difficulty,  when  we  take 
the  element  of  angelic  ministry  into  consideration."* 

The  reception  of  such  information  concerning  the  imme- 
diate future  of  his  people,  together  with  the  intimation  of 
the  fact  that  he  was  about  to  be  informed  of  what  should 


*  "Daniel  and  the  Revelation,"  by  Carl  August  Auberlen,  translated 
by  Rev.  A.  Saphir,  p.  57.  See,  also,  "Excursus  on  the  Angelology  of 
Daniel,"  in  '•  Speaker's  Commentary,"  vi.,  pp.  348-351. 


The  Vision  on  the  Banks  of  the  Hiddekel.     189 

befall  them  in  the  latter  days,  completely  unmanned  the  ven- 
erable prophet,  so  that  he  set  his  face  toward  the  ground, 
and  became  dumb.  But  "one  "like  the  similitude  of  the 
sons  of  men  touched  his  lips,"  and  the  first  use  he  made  of 
his  recovered  power  of  utterance  was  to  say,  "  O  my  lord, 
by  the  vision  my  sorrows  are  turned  upon  me,  and  I  have 
retained  no  strength.  For  how  can  the  servant  of  this  my 
lord  talk  with  this  my  lord.-*  for  as  for  me,  straightway  there 
remained  no  strength  in  me,  neither  is  there  breath  left  in 
me."*  This  brought  new  words  of  comfort  from  the  an- 
gel, whereby  Daniel  was  strengthened.  Then,  resuming  his 
former  theme,  the  heavenly  revealer  indicated  that  he  had 
to  return  to  fight  again  with  the  Persian  evil  angel,  and  that 
while  he  was  going  forth  for,  or  continuing,  that  conflict,  the 
prince  of  Grecia  would  come,  and  a  new  battle  would  begin 
with  him,  in  which  the  representative  of  God's  people  would 
be  left  to  his  own  resources,  with  the  single  exception  of  the 
assistance  of  Michael. 

This  description  of  the  conflicts  in  the  spirit -world  be- 
tween the  rival  angels  foreshadows  the  opposition  encoun- 
tered by  Zerubbabel,  Ezra,  Nehemiah,  and  their  compatriots 
during  the  reigns  of  the  Persian  kings  Darius  Hystaspis, 
Xerxes,  and  Artaxerxes,  and  also  that  which,  at  a  later  time, 
the  descendants  of  the  restorers  of  Jerusalem  met  with  at 
the  hands  of  the  Syrian  representatives  of  the  Greek  Em- 
pire. It  prepares  the  way,  therefore,  for  the  literal  state- 
ments which  follow  in  the  eleventh  chapter,!  and  from 
which  W'Q  learn  that,  while  the  Persian  kingdom  lasted,  the 
enmity  of  the  world-power  to  the  people  of  God  would  be 
largely  restrained,  and  the  monarchs  would  be  either  posi- 

*  Dan.  X.,  16,  17. 

t  The  divisions  into  chapters  here  are  singularly  unfortunate,  and 
ought  to  be  disregarded  by  the  English  reader.  The  tenth,  eleventh,  and 
twelfth  chapters  should  be  read  in  continuous  connection. 


190  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

tively  favorable  to  them,  or,  at  least,  indisposed  to  harm 
them.  But  with  the  Grecian  Empire,  especially  in  one  of 
the  four  divisions  into  which  it  was  to  be  broken  up,  a  dif- 
ferent course  would  be  pursued,  and  the  descendants  of  Is- 
rael would  be  reduced  by  it  for  a  season  to  the  most  terri- 
ble extremities. 

The  revelation  is  introduced  with  the  remarkable  phrase, 
'*  I  will  show  you  that  which  is  written  in  the  Scriptures  of 
truth,"  which,  of  course,  refers  not  to  the  book  which  we 
call  the  Bible,  but  to  that  of  the  divine  foreknowledge  and 
purposes  ;  and  the  prophet,  as  a  man  greatly  beloved,  is 
permitted,  through  the  eye  of  the  angel,  to  read  so  much  of 
that  as  God  chose  to  communicate  to  him.  Thus,  all  his- 
tory is  already  written  in  the  plan  and  prescience  of  Deity. 
If  its  events  were  not  certain,  they  could  not  be  thus  fore- 
known. Yet  that  they  are  certain  does  not  interfere  with 
the  liberty  of  those  by  whose  agency  they  are  brought  about. 
This  looks  like  a  logical  impossibility.  But  let  us  remem- 
ber that  we  are  speaking  of  God,  and  then  we  shall  begin  to 
see  that  infinity  cannot  be  compressed  into  a  finite  syllogism. 
That  we  cannot  understand  how  these  two  propositions  can 
be  both  true,  may  be  admitted ;  but  it  does  not  follow  that 
they  are  absolutely  inconsistent  with  each  other,  in  the  ad- 
ministration of  God.  At  least,  we  must  be  ourselves  infinite 
before  we  can  determine ;  and,  even  as  we  are,  I  do  not  see 
how  any  man,  looking  even  at  the  course  of  his  own  life,  can 
get  quit,  on  the  one  hand,  of  the  overruling  control  of  God, 
or,  on  the  other,  of  the  freedom  of  his  own  will.  There  are, 
and  always  will  be,  the  two  sides  of  this  subject,  and  our 
wisdom  is  to  accept  them  both.  He  who  runs  off  in  the  di- 
rection of  the  absolutism  of  God  will  end  in  fatalism.  He 
who  accepts  only  the  freedom  of  man  will  land  himself  at 
length  in  chance.  But  the  disciple  of  Christ  accepts  them 
both ;  and,  adoring  where  he  cannot  comprehend,  exclaims, 


The  Vision  on  the  Banks  of  the  Hiddekel.     191 

with  Paul,  "  O  the  depth  of  the  riches  both  of  the  wisdom 
and  knowledge  of  God  !  how  unsearchable  are  his  judg- 
ments, and  his  ways  past  finding  out !  For  who  hath  known 
the  mind  of  the  Lord  ?  or  who  hath  been  his  counsellor  ? 
Or  who  hath  first  given  to  him,  and  it  shall  be  recompensed 
unto  him  again  ?  For  of  him,  and  through  him,  and  to  him, 
are  all  things  :  to  whom  be  glory  forever.     Amen."* 

The  prophecy  contained  in  the  eleventh  chapter  may 
be  divided  into  three  parts,  increasing  in  circumstantiality 
as  they  advance.  There  is,  first,  a  brief  description  of  the 
Persian  and  Grecian  empires  ;  second,  a  sketch  of  the  more 
important  events  in  the  struggles  between  the  kings  of  Syria 
and  Egypt;  and,  third,  a  detailed  and  minute  account  of  the 
character  and  actions  of  Antiochus  Epiphanes. 

The  prediction  opens  thus  :  "  Behold,  there  shall  stand 
up  yet  three  kings  in  Persia ;  and  the  fourth  shall  be  far 
richer  than  they  all :  and  by  his  strength  through  his  riches 
he  shall  stir  up  all  against  the  realm  of  Grecia.  And  a 
mighty  king  shall  stand  up,  that  shall  rule  with  great  domin- 
ion, and  do  according  to  his  will.  And  when  he  shall  stand 
up,  his  kingdom  shall  be  broken,  and  shall  be  divided  to- 
ward the  four  winds  of  heaven  ;  and  not  to  his  posterity,  nor 
according  to  his  dominion  which  he  ruled  :  for  his  kingdom 
shall  be  plucked  up,  even  for  others  besides  those."  The 
three  kings  yet  to  appear  were  Cambyses,  Smerdis,  and 
Darius  Hystaspis.  The  fourth  was  Xerxes,  commonly  now 
identified  with  the  Ahasuerus  of  the  Book  of  Esther,  whose 
wealth,  and  whose  immense  expedition  against  Greece, 
reckoned  by  many  as  consisting  of  five  millions  of  men,  are 
well  known.  He  was  succeeded  by  other  Persian  monarchs, 
but  no  mention  is  made  of  them,  because  they  were  of  no 
account  in  the  conflicts  between  Persia  and  Greece,  and  be- 

*  Rom.  xi.,  33-36. 


192  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

cause  it  was  in  the  reign  of  Xerxes,  and  by  the  battle  of 
Salamis,  that  the  Persian  Empire  received  that  blow  from 
which  it  never  recovered,  and  from  which,  therefore,  its  de- 
cay may  be  dated.  Moreover,  it  was  the  invasion  of  Greece 
by  Xerxes  which  was  put  forth  by  Alexander  as  his  pretext 
for  attacking  Persia.  Therefore,  connecting  effect  with 
cause,  the  prediction  leaps  over  a  hundred  and  fifty  years, 
and  lets  us  see  the  nemesis  following  the  crime  even  after 
three  half  -  centuries  ;  thereby  reminding  us  of  the  saying, 
"  God  does  not  pay  at  the  end  of  every  week,  but  at  the 
Last  he  pays." 

The  character  and  success  of  Alexander  are  summed  up 
in  a  sentence ;  and  the  partition  of  his  empire  among  his 
generals  after  his  death  is  accurately  foreshadowed,  accord- 
ing to  the  account  which  we  have  already  given  in  these 
pages.* 

The  second  portion  of  the  proiDhecy,  extending  from  the 
fifth  to  the  nineteenth  verse,  epitomizes  the  more  promi- 
nent of  the  wars  between  "  the  king  of  the  north ;"  that  is, 
the  dynasty  of  the  Seleucidae,  which  occupied  the  throne  of 
Syria,  and  "the  king  of  the  south,"  that  is,  the  dynasty  of 
the  Ptolemies,  which  ruled  over  Egypt.  These  have  been 
particularized,  because  Palestine,  lying  between  the  two,  was 
grievously  wasted  in  their  long-continued  conflict.  As  Lu- 
ther pithily  puts  it,  "  The  Jews,  placed  thus  between  the 
door  and  the  hinge,  were  sorely  tormented  on  both  sides. 
Now  they  fell  a  prey  to  Egypt,  and  anon  to  Syria,  as  the 
one  kingdom  or  the  other  got  the  better,  and  they  had  to 
pay  dearly  for  their  neighborhood  :  specially  when  that  im- 
pious man  was  king  in  Syria  whom  histories  call  Antio- 
chus  Epiphanes.  He  assaulted  the  Jews  most  fiercely,  and 
raged  and  slaughtered  like  a  demon  among  them.     It  was 

*  See  ante,  pp.  145-149. 


The  Vision  on  the  Banks  of  the  Hiddekel.    193 

on  account  of  this  wretched  and  cruel  villain  that  the  vision 
was  given  to  comfort  the  Jews,  whom  he  was  to  torment 
with  all  kinds  of  plagues."* 

The  sixth  verse  thus  begins  the  sketch:  "And  in  the 
end  of  years  they  shall  join  themselves  together ;  for  the 
king's  daughter  of  the  south  shall  come  to  the  king  of  the 
north  to  make  an  agreement :  but  she  shall  not  retain  the 
power  of  the  arm  ;  neither  shall  he  stand,  nor  his  arm  :  but 
she  shall  be  given  up,  and  they  that  brought  her,  and  he 
that  begat  her,  and  he  that  strengthened  her  in  these  times." 
This  describes  an  attempt  to  patch  up  an  alliance  between 
the  two  dynasties  when  Ptolemy  Philadelphus  gave  his 
daughter  Berenice  in  marriage  to  Antiochus  Theos,  the  con- 
dition being  that  he  should  divorce  his  wife  Laodice,  and 
exclude  her  children  from  succession  to  his  throne.  But 
no  good  came  out  of  the  arrangement,  for  Ptolemy  died  two 
years  after  ;  and  then  Antiochus,  having  put  Berenice  away, 
took  back  his  former  wife  Laodice,  who,  fearing  her  hus- 
band's fickleness,  procured  his  murder,  and  subsequently, 
through  her  son,  caused  the  death  of  Berenice  with  her  son 
and  servants. 

Then  follows,  in  the  seventh,  eighth,  and  ninth  verses, 
an  account  of  an  expedition  undertaken  by  the  brother  of 
Berenice,  here  called  "  one  out  of  a  branch  of  her  roots," 
and  known  in  history  as  Ptolemy  Euergetes,  who  sought,  by 
an  invasion  of  Syria,  to  avenge  her  murder.  In  this  he  was 
so  far  successful  that  he  made  himself  master  of  all  the 
country  as  far  east  as  the  Tigris,  and  returned  to  Eg}'pt 
with  forty  thousand  talents  of  silver,  a  vast  number  of  gold- 
en vessels,  and  two  thousand  five  hundred  images,  among 

*  Quoted  by  Auberlen,  in  "  Daniel  and  the  Revelation,"  p.  59.  See 
an  admirable  summary  of  the  history  of  the  Jews  during  this  j^criod  in 
the  "  Speaker's  Commentary,"  vol.  vi.,  p.  377. 

9 


194  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

which  were  many  of  the  Egyptian  idols,  which  Cambyses, 
on  his  conquest  of  Egypt,  three  hundred  years  before,  had 
removed  to  Persia.*  He  outlived  Seleucus  four  years,  and 
thus  "  continued  more  years  than  the  king  of  the  north." 

The  next  section  of  the  chapter  refers  to  Antiochus  the 
Great,  and  his  struggles  with  the  kings  of  Egypt  during  his 
reign.  This  king,  at  first  the  ally,  and  after  two  years  the 
successor,  of  his  brother  Seleucus  Ceraunus,  prosecuted  the 
hereditary  quarrel  with  Egypt  vigorously,  and,  in  the  begin- 
ning, with  success.  Afterward,  however,  he  was  defeated 
with  great  loss,  and  compelled  to  enter  into  a  peace  with 
his  rival,  which  lasted  for  fourteen  years.  This  is  clearly 
foreshadowed  in  the  words,  "  the  king  of  the  south  shall  be 
moved  with  choler,  and  shall  come  forth  and  fight  with  him, 
even  with  the  king  of  the  north  :  and  he  shall  set  forth  a 
great  multitude  ;  but  the  multitude  shall  be  given  into  his 
hand."  But  the  Egj^tian  monarch  could  not  follow  up  his 
advantage,  for  "his  heart  was  lifted  up;"  and  though  he 
"cast  down  many  ten  thousands,"  yet  he  was  not  strength- 
ened thereby.  Accordingly,  at  the  end  of  fourteen  years, 
when  Eg)'pt  had  a  boy  of  five  years  old  for  king,  Antiochus 
renewed  the  war,  "setting  forth  a  greater  multitude  than 
the  former."  On  this  occasion  he  was  assisted  by  many 
Jews,  who  are  here  called  violent  men  (for  so  the  word  ren- 
dered "  robbers  "  may  be  understood)  "  of  thy  people."  In 
acknowledgment  of  their  services,  Antiochus  granted  many 
privileges  and  favors  to  the  Jews,  and  it  might  appear,  at 
first  sight,  that  they  had  made  a  valuable  alliance  in  secur- 
ing the  friendship  of  the  Syrian  monarch  ;  but,  in  reality, 
they  made  a  great  mistake.  The  true  policy  of  the  Jews 
was  to  stand  aloof  from  both  parties  ;  but  in  seeking  to  gain 

*  See  Prideaux,  "  Connection  of  the  Old  and  New  Testaments,"  etc., 
vol.  ii.,  p.  76. 


The  Vision  on  the  Banks  of  the  Hiddekel.    195 

protectjon  from  Antiochus,  they  very  speedily  found  that 
they  had  gone  for  refuge  into  a  lion's  den.  Their  expecta- 
tions, though  at  the  time  apparently  realized,  were  in  the 
end  disappointed ;  for  as  Keil  has  said,  "  The  apostasy  of 
one  party  among  the  Jews  from  the  law  of  their  fathers,  and 
their  adoption  of  heathen  customs,  contributed  to  bring 
about  that  oppression  with  which  the  theocracy  was  visited 
by  Antiochus  Epiphanes."* 

During  this  campaign,  Antiochus  the  Great,  after  an  en- 
gagement at  the  source  of  the  Jordan,  took  Tyre  and  Sidon, 
and  was  received  by  the  Jews  in  their  metropolis  with  great 
gladness,  and  entertained  by  them  with  the  most  liberal  hos- 
pitality. So  "he  stood  in  the  glorious  land;"  but  his  visit 
was  more  a  calamity  than  an  honor,  for  the  garrison  left  in 
the  castle  by  the  Egyptian  general  proved  so  obstinate  that 
he  was  compelled  to  bring  up  his  whole  army  to  reduce  it, 
and  during  the  siege  the  country  was  eaten  up  by  the  sol- 
diers. The  city,  too,  suffered  such  damage  that  it  was  near- 
ly ruined ;  and  so  it  came  to  pass  as  it  is  here  written,  "  he 
shall  stand  in  the  glorious  land,  which  by  his  hand  shall  be 
consumed. "t 

In  his  desire  to  possess  Egypt  as  well  as  Syria,  Antiochus 
gave  his  daughter  Cleopatra  in  marriage  to  Ptolemy  Epiph- 
anes ;  but  his  plan  was  frustrated  by  the  fact  that  she 
sided  with  her  husband  rather  than  her  father,  according  to 
the  statement  made  in  this  prophecy,  "  He  shall  give  him 

*  Quoted  by  Dr.  Strong,  in  Lange,  vol.  xiii.,  Old  Testament,  p.  244. 

t  This  is  the  explanation  given  by  Prideaux  in  his  "  Connection  of  the 
Old  and  New  Testaments,"  etc.,  vol.  ii.,  p.  134;  but  a  different  interpre- 
tation is  offered  in  the  "Speaker's  Commentary,"  which  renders  the 
phrase  "  consumption  shall  be  in  his  hand,"  and,  rejecting  the  applica- 
tion of  the  words  to  the  exhaustion  of  the  land  consequent  upon  the 
siege  referred  to  in  the  text,  leaves  the  difficulty  thereby  created  among 
those  which  are  as  vet  unsolved. 


196  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

the  daughter  of  women,  corrupting  her :  but  she  shall  not 
stand  on  his  side,  neither  be  for  him."  When  he  could  not 
succeed  against  Egypt,  he  turned  his  arms  against  the 
islands  of  the  ^gean,  and,  after  various  successes,  he  en- 
tered on  a  war  with  the  Romans,  in  which  he  was  defeated 
by  Scipio,  who  assumed  the  name  of  Asiaticus,  in  honor  of 
his  victory.  Compelled  to  give  up  all  his  possessions  west 
of  Mount  Taurus  and  to  pay  the  Avhole  expenses  of  the  war, 
Antiochus  subjected  his  kingdom  to  immense  taxation  ;  and 
in  an  attempt  to  rob  the  temple  of  Elymais,  he  was  slain  by 
the  infuriated  people.  Thus  were  fulfilled  the  words  of  this 
prophecy :  "  After  this  shall  he  turn  his  face  unto  the  isles, 
and  shall  take  many :  but  a  prince  for  his  own  behalf  shall 
cause  the  reproach  offered  by  him  to  cease ;  without  his  own 
reproach  he  shall  cause  it  to  turn  upon  him.  Then  he  shall 
turn  his  face  toward  the  fort  of  his  own  land  :  but  he  shall 
stumble  and  fall,  and  not  be  found." 

He  was  succeeded  by  his  son  Seleucus  Philopator,  who 
was  bound  by  the  agreement  of  Antiochus  to  pay  a  thousand 
talents  annually  as  tribute  to  the  Romans  ;  and  who,  to  raise 
that  sum,  became,  according  to  the  expression  of  the  twen- 
tieth verse  here,  "  a  sender  of  taxgatherers  over  the  gloiy 
of  the  kingdom."  During  the  absence  of  both  his  sons,  he 
was  poisoned  by  Heliodorus,  his  treasurer,  whose  ambition 
it  was  to  mount  the  throne  in  his  room.  We  have  thus  the 
verification  of  the  twentieth  verse  :  "  Then  shall  stand  up  in 
his  estate  a  raiser  of  taxes  in  the  glory  of  the  kingdom  :  but 
within  few  days"  (he  reigned  only  eleven  years)  "he  shall 
be  destroyed,  neither  in  anger  nor  in  battle." 

From  this  point  on  to  the  close  of  the  eleventh  chapter, 
we  have  an  account  of  the  character  and  cruelties  of  Antio- 
chus Epiphanes,  concerning  whom,  in  a  former  discourse, 
we  have  so  fully  spoken.*     How  he  should  come   to  the 

*  See  ante,  pp.  152,  157. 


The  Vision  on  the  Banks  of  the  Hiddekel.    197 

kingdom,  not  by  right  of  inheritance  (for  the  eldest  son  of 
his  deceased  brother  was  st'll  alive),  but  by  flatteries  ;*  how, 
after  various  military  successes,  he  should  depose  the  Jew- 
ish high-priest,  Ouias  III.,  from  his  office  ;t  how,  after 
making  a  covenant  with  his  Egyptian  rival,  he  should  deal 
deceitfully,  and  with  a  small  force  of  his  own,  but  assisted 
by  Judah,  become  strong  in  Edom,  Ammon,  and  Moab  ;t 
how  he  should  possess  himself  of  Coelesyria  and  Palestine, 
and,  contrary  to  the  custom  of  his  ancestors,  should  scatter 
liberal  largesses  among  the  people  of  the  subject  lands,  pur- 
suing bribery  as  a  policy,  §  is  all  minutely  described  in  these 
verses. 

With  the  same  accurate  forecast  we  have  here  presented 
to  us  the  details  of  his  wars  with  the  Egyptians.  With  great 
force  on  both  sides,  it  was  a  contest  of  deceiver  with  de- 
ceiver, but  victory  belonged  to  Antiochus  ;||  and  it  was  when 
his  heart  was  lifted  up  by  reason  of  this  success  that  he  en- 
tered upon  those  efforts  against  the  Holy  Covenant  which 
have  made  his  name  detestable  in  the  estimation  alike  of 
Jews  and  Christians. IT  But  as  I  have  already  referred  to 
these  matters  in  detail,  I  need  not  dwell  upon  them  here. 
Let  me  only  point  out  that  in  this  remarkable  prophecy  we 
are  told,  three  hundred  years  before  the  time,  that  he  should 
pollute  the  Temple  of  Jerusalem,**  and  take  away  the  daily 
sacrifice ;  that  he  should  corrupt  some  of  the  chosen  people 
by  his  flatteries,  and  stir  up  others  of  them  to  be  strong  and 
do  exploits  ;tt  that  he  should  exalt  himself  above  every  God, 
and  speak  marvellous  things  against  the  God  of  gods,  per- 
secuting eveiy  faithful  Israelite  without  regard  to  age  or 
sex  ;t  that  he  should  honor  a  false  deity  with  gold  and  sil- 


*  Verse  21.  t  Verse  22.  J  Verse  23. 

§  Verse  24.  ||  Verses  25-27.  \\  Verse  28. 

**  Verse  31.  ft  Verse  32.  J  Verses  36, 37. 


198  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

ver  and  precious  stones  ;*  and  that  he  should  make  an  ex- 
pedition, first  into  Armenia,  and  thence  into  the  East,  where 
he  should  come  to  his  end,  and  none  should  help  him. 
Now,  all  these  things  actually  came  to  pass.  It  would,  I 
fear,  exhaust  your  patience  if  I  were  to  attempt  to  show  you 
here  how  each  verse  in  the  prediction  has  been  fulfilled. 
Instead,  therefore,  of  reproducing  the  history  which  is  thus 
so  remarkably  forewritten,  I  would  recommend  you  to  study 
with  attention  the  statements  made  by  the  commentators  in 
their  exposition  of  this  chapter ;  and  though  it  is  the  fash- 
ion among  those  who  would  be  accounted  scholarly  to  decry 
the  writings  of  Matthew  Henry  and  Albert  Barnes,  I  am 
free  to  confess  that,  after  an  amount  of  reading  on  this  sub- 
ject which  I  should  not  care  to  repeat,  I  have  found  no  ex- 
positors more  clear,  more  connected,  or  more  judicious  than 
the  two  whom  I  have  named. f     They  are,  besides,  easily 

*  Verse  38.  "  The  King's  own  special  deity  was  not  of  his  Grecian 
ancestry,  but  one  borrowed  from  Rome — whether  the  war-god  Mars,  fa- 
ther of  the  Roman  people,  or  Jupiter  of  the  Capitoline  Rock,  to  whom 
he  began  to  build  a  splendid  temple  at  Antioch  —  in  either  case,  filling 
even  the  Jews,  to  whom  all  these  divinities  might  have  been  thought 
equally  repugnant,  with  a  new  thrill  of  sorrow,  as  indicating  a  disrespect 
even  of  the  religion  of  his  own  race,  and  introducing  a  strange  and  terri- 
ble name."     So  Stanley  expands  this  verse,  "Jewish  Church,"  vol.  iii., 

PP-  329.  330- 

t  The  earlier  volumes  of  Mr.  Barnes — those,  namely,  on  the  Gospels 
and  the  Acts — are  meagre  enough ;  but  he  improved  as  he  advanced, 
and  his  latest  efforts  are  his  best.  His  commentaries  on  Job,  Daniel, 
and  the  Psalms  are  every  way  admirable,  and  cannot  be  consulted  with- 
out advantage.  To  those  writers  named  above  we  ought  to  add  the  un- 
pretending but  valuable  volume  of  Dr.  Cowles,  of  Oberlin,  and  the  anno- 
tations of  Mr.  Fuller  in  the  "  Speaker's  Commentary,"  although  the  latter 
are  in  some  places  halting  and  unsatisfactory.  Dean  Stanley,  in  his  last 
volume  on  the  Jewish  Church,  is,  as  usual,  brilliant  in  description,  but  he 
is  too  much  under  the  spell  of  Ewald  throughout ;  and  nowhere  more 
than  in  this  volume  does  he  verify  the  criticism  of  Dr.  Pusey,  given  in 


The  Vision  on  the  Banks  of  the  Hiddekel.    199 

accessible  to  every  one  who  wishes  to  study  the  Word  of 
God,  and  every  reader  of  their  comments  will  be  constrained 
to  come  to  the  conclusion  indicated  by  F.  W.  Newman  in  his 
article  on  Antiochus  Epiphanes  in  Kitto's  "  Cyclopaedia," 
that  "  either  this  chapter  was  written  after  the  events,  or  it 
was  given  by  inspiration  of  God,"  The  latter,  I  fear,  is  the 
alternative  which  that  writer  would  adopt ;  but  the  very  ob- 
scurities which  remain  in  the  chapter,  despite  all  the  efforts 
of  interpreters  to  explain  them,  are  inconsistent  with  that 
hypothesis,  for  one  writing  after  the  facts  had  occurred  would 
not  have  left  any  such  difficulties.  Besides,  even  the  Mac- 
cabean  date  of  this  book  does  not  eliminate  the  supernatu- 
ral from  its  pages,  for,  as  we  have  seen,  the  prophecy  of  the 
seventy  heptades  is  as  clearly  beyond  the  limit  of  human 
ingenuity  when  we  regard  it  as  given  two  hundred  as  when 
we  estimate  it  as  written  five  hundred  years  before  its  ful- 
filment. Indeed,  even  in  the  estimation  of  such  a  critic  as 
Ewald,  this  book  furnished  the  inspiration  by  which  the 
handful  of  Jewish  patriots  under  Judas  Maccabaeus  were 
moved  to  the  performance  of  those  prodigies  of  valor  by 
which  their  Temple  was  recovered  and  their  religion  pre- 
served. But  if  that  be  admitted,  it  is  every  way  more  nat- 
ural to  view  it  as  handed  down  from  the  exile  than  to  sup- 
pose, as  he  does,  that  it  "  sprung  from  the  necessities  of  the 
noblest  impulses  of  the  age,"  and  "rendered  to  that  age  the 

these  words  :  "  It  seems  to  be  a  principle  with  Dean  Stanley  to  hold  that 
to  be  uncertain  which  is  assailed.  Conviction  amidst  contradictions  of 
truth  seems  to  him  undue  dogmatism.  His  mind  has  been  remarkably 
characterized  as  one  which, '  having  a  poetical  faculty  of  seeing  resem- 
blances, lacks  the  philosophical  power  of  seeing  differences.'  " — Preface 
to  Daniel  the  Prophet,  pp.  26,  27. 

All  the  writers  on  this  chapter  from  Prideaux  downward  draw  their 
materials  mainly  from  Josephus  and  the  books  of  the  Maccabees.  Mil- 
man's  "  History  of  the  Jews  "  will  be  read  with  interest  by  young  and 
old  alike. 


200  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

purest  service."*  The  examples  of  Daniel  in  the  den  and 
the  three  youths  in  the  furnace  quickened  the  faith  of  those 
who  were  called  to  suffer  for  conscience'  sake,  while  the  de- 
tails of  this  prediction  assured  them  that  after  a  little  while 
their  oppressor  would  be  taken  away. 

It  remains  that  I  should  look  for  a  moment  at  the  opin- 
ion of  those  who  believe  that  we  have  in  this  prediction  a 
reference  to  the  Antichrist  of  the  New  Testament  as  well 
as  to  Antiochus.  Of  these,  there  are  some  who  think  that 
up  to  a  certain  point  the  description  is  applicable  solely  to 
the  Syrian  despot,  but  that  from  that  point  he  is  dropped, 
and  the  rest  is  to  be  explained  of  the  evil  principle  or  pow- 
er of  which  both  Paul  and  John  have  spoken.  But  for  such 
an  idea  we  can  find  no  sure  foundation.  There  is  nothing 
in  the  chapter  to  indicate  that  a  transition  from  one  subject 
to  another  is  made  ;  and  if  we  begin  to  expound  it  as  refer- 
ring to  the  sufferings  of  the  Jews  in  the  conflicts  between 
Syria  and  Egypt,  we  must  adhere  to  that  principle  of  inter- 
pretation throughout.  Others,  however,  affirm  that  the  An- 
tiochus of  this  prophecy,  though  himself  an  historical  per- 
sonage, in  whom  all  that  is  here  written  was  accomplished, 
is  also  a  type  of  the  papal  Antichrist,  in  whom,  in  a  yet 
more  terrible  sense,  it  will  be  again  fulfilled.  But  it  is  a 
question  not  yet  settled,  whether  the  Papacy  really  is  the 
Antichrist  of  the  New  Testament ;  and,  however  that  may 
be  solved,  it  is  a  perilous  thing  to  make  any  person  in  the 
Old  Testament  a  type,  in  any  proper  sense  of  that  word, 
unless  we  have  authority  for  doing  so  in  the  New  Testament 
itself.  No  doubt  the  language  here  used  concerning  Antio- 
chus is  very  similar  to  that  employed  by  Paul  to  describe 
the  evil  power  that  is  to  exalt  himself  above  all  that  is 
called  God,  or  that  is  worshipped ;  yet  mere  resemblance  is 

*  Quoted  in  Stanley's  "  History  of  the  Jewish  Church,"  vol.  iii.,  p.  336. 


The  Vision  on  the  Banks  of  the  Hiddekel.    201 

not  sufficient  to  warrant  the  conclusion  that  we  are  to  look 
for  a  minute  fulfilment  of  this  prediction  in  some  wicked 
ruler  during  the  Gospel  dispensation.  I  deem  it  safer, 
more  reverent,  and  more  instructive  also,  to  see  in  this 
chapter  a  forecast  of  one  great  crisis  in  the  history  of  an- 
cient Israel,  and  to  draw  from  that  the  inference  that  every 
power,  whether  temporal  or  spiritual,  which  sets  itself  up 
against  the  cause  of  God,  however  for  a  time  it  may  seem  to 
be  successful,  shall  come  to  an  end,  and  none  shall  help  it. 
We  have  thus  repeated  to  us  the  old  truth,  which  sounds 
with  more  than  earthly  music  in  the  jubilant  strophes  of  the 
Forty-sixth  Psalm,  and  we  hear  again  the  words  of  Isaiah : 
"  No  weapon  that  is  formed  against  thee  shall  prosper  ;  and 
every  tongue  that  shall  rise  against  thee  in  judgment  thou 
shalt  condemn.  This  is  the  heritage  of  the  servants  of  the 
Lord,  and  their  righteousness  is  of  me,  saith  the  Lord."* 

Reverting,  now,  in  conclusion,  to  the  benefit  which  we 
may  ourselves  derive  from  the  study  of  this  portion  of 
Scripture,  we  may  learn,  for  one  thing,  that  God  prepares 
his  people  for  special  trial  by  special  grace.  If  it  be  true, 
as  it  surely  is,  that  the  Lord  never  gives  faith  without  in 
some  way,  ere  long,  putting  it  to  the  test,  it  is  no  less  so  that 
he  never  sends  tribulation  without  giving  us  something  to 
support  us  under  it.  He  anticipates  the  evil  with  his  help. 
His  assistance  is  ever  beforehand  with  our  emergency,  and 
in  his  words  of  prophecy  and  promise  he  has  already  pro- 
vided us  with  all  we  need  in  any  hour  of  trial.  "  He  send- 
eth  no  man  a  warfare  on  his  own  charges  ;"  and  before  he 
sets  one  out  upon  a  pilgrimage,  he  puts  a  staff  in  his  hand 
to  support  him  by  the  way.  That  was  the  great  purpose  for 
which  this  prediction  was  given,  and  the  "exploits"  which 
were  done  by  the  faithful  few  who  knew  their  God,  and  had 

*  Isa.  liv.,  17. 


202  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

understanding  to  recognize  the  meaning  of  the  revelation 
which  he  had  given  to  Daniel,  were  the  outcome  of  his  good- 
ness. 

But  the  relation  of  this  portion  of  God's  Word  to  the  cir- 
cumstances of  the  people  under  Antiochus  is  precisely  that 
of  all  his  promises  to  our  trials,  temptations,  and  necessities. 
Every  promise  of  God  is  a  prophecy ;  and  if,  knowing  him 
who  gives  them,  we  grasp  his  assurances  as  firmly  as  the 
Maccabeans  did  in  their  time  of  peril,  we  too  shall  be  val- 
iant for  the  Lord  God  of  Israel.  There  is  not  one  among 
us  of  any  maturity  in  Christian  experience  who  cannot  point 
to  some  portion  of  Scripture  that  has  been  to  him,  in  an 
hour  of  conflict,  or  agony,  or  need,  just  what  this  portion 
of  Daniel  was  to  those  who  "resisted  unto  blood  striving" 
against  the  persecuting  King  of  Syria. 

One  of  the  most  profitable  conference-meetings  which  we 
ever  attended  had  for  its  subject  "favorite  texts."  It  soon 
appeared  that  special  interest  was  felt  in  the  topic  by  all 
present,  and  more  than  the  usual  number  were  eager  to 
make  themselves  heard,  not  because  they  wanted  to  show 
themselves,  but  because  they  wished  a  word  to  be  said 
about  the  passage  which  was  to  them  so  dear.  It  came  out, 
also,  that  every  text  that  was  referred  to  was  dwelt  upon, 
not  for  its  literary  beauty,  but  because  of  a  certain  experi- 
ence through  which  the  individual  had  passed,  and  in  which 
it  had  been  to  him  like  the  hand  of  God  himself,  held  clown 
for  him  to  grasp.  In  some  cases  the  verse  particularized 
had  been  the  instrument  of  conversion,  and  then  were  re- 
lated the  circumstances  in  connection  with  which  the  soul 
had  passed  from  darkness  unto  light.  In  others,  the  words 
had  been  the  stay  of  the  heart  in  agony  and  trial ;  and  then 
the  story  of  "  toiling  in  rowing  "  on  the  midnight  lake,  and 
against  the  howling  wind,  was  rehearsed,  w^hile  the  voice 
quivered  as  the  speaker  referred  to  the  calm  influence  of 


The  Vision  on  the  Banks  of  the  Hiddekel.    203 

the  Saviour's  "  Peace,  be  still !"  Young  and  old  and  mid- 
dle-aged had  some  s^Decial  text  to  honor  ;  and,  as  we  lis- 
tened, we  all  felt  that  we  had  never  looked  so  deeply  into 
each  other's  hearts,  or  seen  so  much  of  the  manifold  adap- 
tation of  the  Scripture  to  the  conditions  of  men,  as  we  did 
then. 

Brethren,  there  is  nothing  that  can  support  the  soul  like 
the  Word  of  God ;  and  it  would  be  well  for  us,  in  our  days 
of  health  and  happiness,  to  study  its  pages  so  that,  when 
trouble  is  upon  us,  we  may  be  able  at  once  to  lay  hold  of 
the  promise  which  our  father  has  put  in  it  beforehand  for 
our  solace  and  succor.  Thus  out  of  each  new  trial  we  shall 
come  with  a  new  text,  brightened  and  glorified  for  us  by  the 
experience  which  it  recalls  ;  and  so  we  shall  understand  how 
it  happens  that,  though  the  words  are  the  same  in  every 
copy,  the  Bible  is  not  the  same  to  every  believer  ;  for,  as  the 
years  roll  on,  each  writes  his  autobiography  over  its  verses, 
and  sees  something  in  it  which  is  invisible  to  all  but  him- 
self. Oh,  if  we  had  but  understanding  to  use  its  revelations 
thus,  no  mousing  rationalism  would  be  allowed  by  us  to  eat 
away  its  treasures,  and  the  deeds  of  the  Maccabeans  would 
be  outshone  by  our  steadfast  and  unflinching  adherence  to 
its  Lord. 

But  we  may  learn,  in  the  second  place,  from  this  section 
of  prophecy  that  faith  in  the  invisible  is  essential  to  our 
getting  the  full  benefit  of  Scripture.  Much  may  be  gained 
from  it  in  history  and  in  morals,  even  if  we  should  repudiate 
everything  that  is  supernatural  in  its  pages.  I  do  not  stay 
now  to  ask  whether  this  can  be  done  consistently  or  not.  I 
simply  admit  that  it  is  possible  ;  but  to  obtain  the  utmost 
benefit  from  its  words,  we  must  accept  its  revelation  of  that 
which  is  hidden  from  mortal  sight.  The  relation  of  the 
tenth  chapter  of  Daniel,  with  its  details  about  the  angelic 
world,  to  the  eleventh,  with  its  descriptions  of  earthly  con- 


204  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

flicts,  is  that  of  the  unseen  to  the  future.  So,  when  the 
Maccabeans  saw  the  events  which  Daniel  had  foretold  hap- 
pening before  their  eyes,  they  would  have  recalled  to  them 
the  revelation  of  the  invisible  by  which  the  prophecy  was 
accompanied,  and  would  be  encouraged  and  supported  by 
the  thought  that  "  the  angel  of  the  Lord  encampeth  round 
about  them  that  fear  him,  and  delivereth  them."  They 
would  feel  that  the  God  of  Michael  was  on  their  side,  and 
that  would  nerve  them  to  new  courage. 

But  the  revelation  of  Christ  to  the  eye  of  the  protomartyr 
stands  for  us  in  the  same  relation  to  that  precious  assurance 
of  his,  "  Lo  !  I  am  with  you  alway,  even  unto  the  end  of  the 
world ;"  and  if,  when  we  are  beleaguered  by  spiritual  ene- 
mies, we  could  but  recall  the  description,  "  He,  being  full 
of  the  Holy  Ghost,  looked  steadfastly  up  into  heaven,  and 
saw  the  glory  of  God,  and  Jesus  standing  on  the  right  hand 
of  God,  and  said,  Behold,  I  see  the  heavens  opened,  and 
the  Son  of  man  standing  on  the  right  hand  of  God,"  we 

should  not  be  moved  by 

"  Reviling  tones, 
Nor  sell  our  hearts  to  idle  moans," 

but  continue  firm  and  unfaltering  in  our  allegiance  to  our 
Lord.  The  promises  of  Jesus  are  not  to  us  like  the  lega- 
cies of  one  long  dead ;  they  are  not  the  words  merely  of  a 
great  philosopher,  like  the  Grecian  sage,  whom  death  has  sev- 
ered from  all  personal  contact  with  our  modern  life.  They 
are  the  assurances  of  a  living  and  present  though  unseen 
friend  ;  and,  when  so  accepted,  they  are  full  of  power.  De- 
pend upon  it,  the  precious  assurance,  *'  My  grace  is  sufficient 
for  thee,  my  strength  is  made  perfect  in  weakness,"  meant 
far  more  to  Paul,  because  of  the  revelation  of  the  unseen  in 
the  third  heavens  which  he  had  so  shortly  before  received. 
That  gave  them  reality  and  present  availability,  and  in  these 
were  their  comforting  influence.     Let  us,  therefore,  remem- 


The  Vision  on  the  Banks  of  the  Hiddekel.    205 

ber  that,  behind  every  pledge  which  this  book  contains, 
there  is  the  living  though  unseen  God,  and  that  "  he  maketh 
his  angels  ministering  spirits  for  them  that  shall  be  heirs  of 
salvation."  This  will  uphold  us  in  all  time  of  extremity ; 
and  the  only  issue  of  our  calamities  will  be  "  to  purge  and 
to  make  us  white,  even  unto  the  time  of  the  end."  The  in- 
spiration of  Moses'  life  came  from  the  fact  that  "  he  en- 
dured as  seeing  him  who  is  invisible  ;"  and  the  Bible  will 
be  to  us  no  better  than  the  moral  maxims  of  Antoninus  or 
Epictetus,  unless  we  receive  its  revelation  of  the  unseen  in 
connection  with  its  forecasts  of  prophecy  and  promise.  The 
two  must  go  together ;  for  we  have  no  motive  to  rest  in  the 
one  unless  we  accept  the  other. 


XII. 

THE  EPILOGUE  TO  THE  VISION. 

Daniel  xii. 

THIS  chapter  is  not  only  the  epilogue  to  the  vision 
which  we  considered  in  our  last  lecture,  but  also  the 
formal  conclusion  to  the  Book  of  Daniel  as  a  whole.  It 
stands  in  a  relation,  primary  and  immediate  to  the  predic- 
tions which  have  just  preceded  it,  and  secondary  and  more 
remote  to  all  those  which  are  contained  in  this  interesting 
portion  of  the  Sacred  Scriptures.  Its  interpreters  may  be 
divided  generally  into  those  who  regard  its  announcements 
as  already  fulfilled,  and  those  who,  denying  their  accomplish- 
ment in  the  past,  are  still  looking  for  it  in  the  future. 

Its  first  clause,  "  at  that  time,"  fixes  the  reference  of  all 
that  follows  to  the  period  spoken  of  in  the  closing  verses 
of  the  eleventh  chapter.  If,  therefore,  we  were  right  in 
expounding  that  section  of  Antiochus  Epiphanes,  we  must 
take  this  also  as  relating  to  the  fearful  time  when  that 
abominable  tyrant  persecuted  the  people  and  defiled  the 
house  of  Jehovah.  It  is  no  objection  to  this  view  that  this 
era  is  described  as  "  a  time  of  trouble  such  as  never  was 
since  there  was  a  nation  even  to  that  same  time ;"  for,  not 
to  say  that  this  expression  must  be  more  or  less  hyperboli- 
cal, we  have  only  to  read  the  books  of  the  Maccabees  to  be 
convinced  that  the  atrocities  committed  by  Antiochus  and 
his  subordinates  were  such  as  might  well  enough  be  charac- 
terized by  these  emphatic  words.  Since  the  days  of  Daniel, 
history  has  recorded  many  cruelties  to  which  men  have  been 


The  Epilogue  to  the  Vision.  207 

subjected  for  their  faith,  both  in  ancient  and  modern  times  ; 
but  though  those  inflicted  by  Antiochus  have  been  some- 
times equalled  by  others,  they  certainly  have  never  been  ex- 
ceeded. Hence,  there  is  nothing  in  this  language  incon- 
sistent with  the  interpretation  of  those  who  would  explain 
it,  as  we  do,  of  the  time  when  that  brutal  monster  desolated 
Jerusalem,  and  desecrated  its  Temple. 

Neither  do  we  find  any  difficulty  arising  out  of  the  last 
clause  of  the  first  verse,  which  says,  "  at  that  time  thy  peo- 
ple shall  be  delivered,  every  one  that  shall  be  found  written 
in  the  book."  For  the  phrase  "written  in  the  book"  sim- 
ply means  "designated  by  God  as  to  be  delivered,"  or 
"known  by  God,  and  protected  by  him,  as  his  own."  No 
doubt  the  words  are  very  similar  to  those  which  are  em- 
ployed in  the  New  Testament  description  of  the  last  judg- 
ment ;  and  they  might  very  well  be  regarded  as  alluding  to 
the  same  thing  here,  provided  there  were  anything  in  the 
preceding  context  that  would  make  such  a  reference  natural. 
In  the  absence  of  that,  however,  it  is  every  way  safer  to 
content  ourselves  with  explaining  the  words,  as  descriptive 
of  the  deliverance  of  God's  faithful  ones  in  the  days  of 
Judas  Maccabaeus. 

A  far  more  serious  objection  to  this  exposition  seems  to 
arise  from  the  statement  made  in  the  second  and  third 
verses:  "And  many  of  them  that  sleep  in  the  dust  of  the 
earth  shall  awake,  some  to  everlasting  life,  and  some  to 
shame  and  everlasting  contempt.  And  they  that  be  wise 
shall  shine  as  the  brightness  of  the  firmament ;  and  they 
that  turn  many  to  righteousness,  as  the  stars  for  ever  and 
ever."  Kere  there  is,  unquestionably,  a  reference  to  the 
resurrection  of  the  dead,  and  the  future  state  of  rewards 
and  punishments.  It  is  idle  to  attempt,  with  Barnes,  to 
give  these  words  a  figurative  sense,  and  make  them  describe 
a  general  uprising  of  the  people  against  the  Syrian  despot. 


2o8  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

Every  one  feels  instinctively  that  such  an  interpretation  is 
far  beneath  the  full  significance  of  the  verse,  even  though  it 
be  admitted,  as  the  author  referred  to  does  admit,  that  there 
is  a  typical  allusion  to  the  resurrection  from  the  dead.  I 
do  not  wonder,  therefore,  that  ingenuous  minds  turn  with 
dissatisfaction  from  such  an  explanation.  Nor  is  it  strange 
to  me  that  almost  all  those  who,  as  expositors  of  the  Book 
of  Revelation,  believe  in  two  literal  resurrections,  do  also 
regard  these  words  as  referring  to  one  of  them,  and  en- 
deavor to  make  the  predictions  with  which  they  are  connect- 
ed fit  in  with  their  general  system  of  prophetic  interpreta- 
tion. But  as  I  have  not  been  able  to  accept  their  scheme 
of  prophecy,  as,  indeed,  on  quite  other  grounds  than  those 
of  mere  exigesis  I  have  been  constrained  hitherto  to  reject 
it,  I  must  look  for  some  other  exposition  which  will  meet 
the  circumstances  of  the  case. 

Is  there  no  interpretation,  then,  which,  while  regarding 
these  words  as  referring  to  the  literal  resurrection  of  the 
dead,  will  harmonize  also  with  the  view  which  explains  the 
whole  passage  of  the  days  of  Antiochus  ?  I  think  there  is ; 
and  it  is  to  me  an  additional  recommendation  of  the  expla- 
nation which  I  am  about  to  present,  that  I  find  it  in  the 
pages  of  Auberlen,  who  is  himself  an  adherent  of  the  pre- 
millennial  school.  I  ask  your  close  attention  while  I  en- 
deavor to  unfold  it.  The  phrase  "  they  that  be  wise,"  in 
the  third  verse  of  this  twelfth  chapter,  corresponds  to  —  is 
indeed,  in  the  original,  identical  with — that  rendered  "  they 
that  understand  among  the  people,"  in  the  thirty-third  verse 
of  the  eleventh  chapter.  It  recurs  in  the  thirty-fifth  verse 
as,  "  they  of  understanding."  Again,  the  "  turning  of  many 
to  righteousness,"  in  the  third  verse  of  the  twelfth  chapter, 
answers  to  the  "instructing  of  many,"  in  the  thirty-third 
verse  of  the  eleventh  chapter.  Now  here  we  have  the  key 
to  the  explanation  of  the  reference  which  is  made  to  the  res- 


The  Epilogue  to  the  Vision.  209 

urrection.  The  coming-forth  of  the  dead  from  their  graves 
is  not  introduced  as  a  new  fact  which  was  to  occur  in  the 
immediate  line  of  the  incidents  which  have  been  so  par- 
ticularly indicated.  It  is  not  a  new  element  in  this  proph- 
ecy, and  does  not  belong  to  it  specially  and  particularly. 
The  words  do  not  imply  that  a  resurrection  of  those  who 
had  fallen  in  the  Maccabean  struggle  should  immediately 
follow  that  struggle.  Rather  the  resurrection  is  mentioned 
as  a  great  fact  which  is  to  come  at  the  close  of  all  human 
history,  and  from  it  both  warning  and  encouragement  are 
drawn  appropriate  to  the  emergency  of  that  dreadful  time. 
It  is  alluded  to  for  the  purpose  of  setting  clearly  before  the 
men  of  that  generation  the  solemn  truth — true  for  all  gener- 
ations as  for  that — that  they  who  remained  faithful  to  the 
covenant  of  their  God,  and  strengthened  their  brethren  in 
the  same  course,  would  be  ultimately  raised  to  eternal  glory; 
while  they  who  apostatized  from  the  right  path  would  be 
eternally  lost.  The  design  of  the  apocalyptic  angel  thus 
was  to  stimulate  the  Jews  of  the  days  of  Antiochus  to  fidel- 
ity by  the  consideration  of  the  momentous  individual  issues 
that  hung  upon  their  conduct.  "We  have  here,"  says  Au- 
berlen,  "  a  parallel  to  the  epistles  to  the  Seven  Churches  in 
the  Revelation  of  John,  which  contain  promises  for  those 
who  overcome,  and  threats  for  those  who  fall  away.  The 
sole  purpose  for  which  the  resurrection  is  introduced  is  to 
show  the  causal  connection  between  the  behavior  of  the 
people  during  the  time  of  their  probation  and  their  eter- 
nal state  ;  but  not  the  slightest  intimation  is  given  as  to  the 
chronological  relation  between  the  time  of  distress  and  that 
of  resurrection."*  In  proof  of  this,  we  may  direct  attention 
to  the  fact  that  the  phrase  "at  that  time,"  occurring  twice 
in  the  first  verse,  does  not  appear  in  either  the  second  or 

*  "  Daniel  and  the  Revelation,"  by  Carl  August  Aubeilen,  etc.,  p.  174. 


2IO  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

the  third.  In  these  last  no  note  of  time  is  given.  Hither- 
to the  angel  has  prophesied  the  development  of  history, 
without  adding  any  remark  or  exhortation.  Here,  however, 
he  concludes  his  predictions  by  adding  the  strongest  possi- 
ble incitement  to  faithful  perseverance ;  an  incitement  which 
must  have  had  all  the  stronger  effect,  since,  though  it  is  oc- 
casionally referred  to  in  earlier  prophets,  the  resurrection 
had  never  before  been  brought  forward  so  distinctly  and 
powerfully,  and  especially  had  never  been  shown  in  its  con- 
nection with  retribution. 

This  view  of  the  passage  is  rendered  still  more  probable 
when  we  turn  to  the  history  of  the  period  referred  to,  and 
learn  that  the  hope  of  resurrection  to  eternal  life  did  sustain 
the  sufferers  under  the  infliction  of  the  most  dreadful  cruel- 
ties. Thus,  in  the  seventh  chapter  of  the  Second  Book  of 
Maccabees,  which  contains  an  account  of  the  martyrdom  of 
seven  brothers  and  their  mother,  whose  tortures  are  given 
as  a  specimen  of  those  by  which  the  faithful  were  tried,  we 
read  that  the  second  son,  when  he  was  asked  whether  he 
would  eat  swine's  flesh  before  he  should  be  punished  in 
every  member  of  his  body,  made  answer,  "  No ;"  and  being 
put  to  torture,  exclaimed,  with  his  latest  breath,  "  Thou  like 
a  fury  takest  us  out  of  the  present  life,  but  the  King  of  the 
world  shall  raise  us  up,  who  have  died  for  his  laws,  unto 
everlasting  life."  So,  also,  the  fourth  brother  said,  "  It  is 
good,  being  put  to  death  by  men,  to  look  for  hope  from  God 
to  be  raised  up  again  by  him  ;  as  for  thee,  thou  shalt  have 
no  resurrection  to  life."  And  the  mother,  who  was  marvel- 
lous above  all,  exhorted  her  sons,  saying,  "  Doubtless  the 
Creator  of  the  world  will  also  give  you  breath  and  life 
again,  as  you  now  regard  not  your  own  selves  for  his  laws' 
sake."  In  the  patient  heroism,  therefore,  of  those  noble 
ones  who  counted  not  their  lives  dear  unto  them,  that  they 
might  keep  the  ordinance  of  their  God,  and  who  upheld 


The  Epilogue  to  the  Vision.  2ti 

their  hearts  by  faith  in  the  resurrection  to  eternal  Hfe,  we 
see  the  fruit  of  this  reference  to  that  grand  and  crowning 
miracle  which  is  to  put  the  cope-stone  on  human  history. 

Fitly,  too,  does  the  allusion  to  the  resurrection  at  the  last 
bring  the  whole  series  of  predictions  to  a  close,  and  lead 
the  angel  to  say,  "  Shut  up  the  words,  and  seal  the  book 
even  unto  the  time  of  the  end.  Many  shall  run  to  and  fro, 
and  knowledge  shall  be  increased."  "  The  time  of  the  end  " 
is  the  appointed  time  for  the  fulfilment  of  these  predictions, 
which  was  to  be  marked  by  an  increase  of  knowledge  among 
men,  consequent  upon  the  passing  of  multitudes  from  place 
to  place.  It  is  indeed  a  general  law,  that  knowledge  grows 
in  proportion  as  the  facilities  of  travel  between  dififerent 
countries  are  multiplied.  Of  this  there  have  been  many  il- 
lustrations in  the  course  of  human  history.  We  have  a  very 
signal  one  in  our  own  age ;  and  there  was  another,  no  less 
remarkable  in  its  way,  in  that  to  which  these  prophecies  re- 
fer ;  for,  after  the  yoke  of  Antiochus  was  broken,  the  Roman 
power  began  to  spread  over  the  East ;  and  to  this  era,  when 
communication  between  the  nations  became  more  easy  and 
more  frequent,  we  trace  that  general  diffusion  of  the  Greek 
language  and  literature  which,  in  the  purpose  of  God,  was 
destined  to  prepare  the  way  for  the  publication  of  the  Gos- 
pel in  all  lands.  The  age  which  culminated  in  the  culture 
and  pre-eminence  of  Alexandria,  with  its  scholarship  and 
philosophy,  and  in  which  the  translation  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment into  the  Greek  language  was  made,  was  certainly  one 
to  which  these  words  are  applicable  :  "  Many  shall  run  to 
and  fro,  and  knowledge  shall  be  increased " 

After  the  angel  had  ceased  speaking  to  Daniel,  the  proph- 
et saw  other  two  messengers  from  heaven,  standing,  one  on 
each  side  of  the  river  Tigris ;  and,  as  he  looked  and  listened, 
he  heard  one  of  these  ask  the  glorious  One  whom  he  had 
first  beheld,  "  How  long  shall  it  be  to  the  end  of  these  won- 


2  12  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

ders  ?"  He  received  for  answer,  with  a  solemn  asseveration 
of  their  truth,  the  following  words  :  "  It  shall  be  for  a  time, 
times,  and  a  half;*  and  when  he- shall  have  accomplished  to 
scatter  the  power  of  the  holy  people,  all  these  things  shall 
be  finished."  That  is  to  say,  it  shall  be  for  three  years  and 
a  half;  and  when  the  tyrant  shall  have  done  all  that  he 
could  to  scatter  the  power  of  the  Jews,  the  deliverance  shall 
come.  Daniel,  however,  did  not  understand  the  answer,  and 
repeated  the  question  which  the  angel  had  asked,  only  in  a 
slightly  different  form  :  "  O  my  Lord,  what  shall  be  the  end 
of  these  things  ?"  To  this  the  following  reply  was  given  : 
"  Go  thy  way,  Daniel :  for  the  words  are  closed  up  and  sealed 
till  the  time  of  the  end.  Many  shall  be  purified,  and  made 
white,  and  tried;  but  the  wicked  shall  do  wickedly:  and 
none  of  the  wicked  shall  understand  ;  but  the  wise  shall  un- 
derstand. And  from  the  time  that  the  daily  sacrifice  shall 
be  taken  away,  and  the  abomination  that  maketh  desolate 
set  up,  there  shall  be  a  thousand  two  hundred  and  ninety 
days.  Blessed  is  he  that  waiteth,  and  cometh  to  the  thou- 
sand three  hundred  and  five-and-thirty  days.  But  go  thou 
thy  way,  till  the  end  be  :  for  thou  shalt  rest,  and  stand  in 
thy  lot  at  the  end  of  the  days." 

We  have  already  seen  that  the  desolation  of  the  Temple 
by  Antiochus  extended  over  three  years  and  six  months, 
which  is  here  styled  "  a  time  and  times  and  the  dividing 
of  time ;"  but  we  cannot  pass  this  note  of  number  without 
remarking  on  the  singular  coincidences  presented  by  its 
frequent  recurrence  both  in  history  and  prophecy.  The 
drought  in  the  days  of  Elijah  lasted  three  years  and  six 
months.  The  little  horn  which  appeared  on  the  head  of 
the  fourth  beast  was  to  have  the  saints  given  into  his  hands 
"until  a  time  and  times  and  the  dividing  of  time."     The 

*  Literally,  "  a  time,  two  times,  and  a  half." 


The  Epilogue  to  the  Vision.  213 

public  ministry  of  the  Messiah  was  to  continue  for  half  a 
week  or  heptacle  of  years ;  that  is,  for  three  years  and  a 
half.  His  Gospel  was  to  be  preached  to  the  Jews  after  his 
ascension  for  another  half-heptade  before  it  was  proclaimed 
to  the  Gentiles.  Then,  in  the  Book  of  Revelation,  it  is  said 
that  the  woman  shall  be  nourished  in  the  wilderness  "for 
a  time,  and  times,  and  half  a  time,"*  and  that  the  Holy  City 
should  be  trodden  under  foot  forty  and  two  months,  which 
are  three  and  a  half  years.  Now,  all  these  are  marvellous 
coincidences,  and  point  to  the  existence  of  some  hidden  har- 
mony which  has  not  yet  been  discovered.  I  might  add  that 
three  and  a  half  is  the  half  of  the  number  seven,  which,  found 
in  the  week,  has  been  made  the  symbol  of  perfection,  and 
as  such  frequently  recurs  in  the  Word  of  God.  The  sacred 
lamp  had  seven  branches ;  the  seventh  was  the  Sabbatic 
year;  and  at  the  end  of  seven  sevens  came  the  year  of 
Jubilee.  So,  also,  the  seventy  years  of  the  Captivity  were 
made  the  basis  of  the  seven  seventies  of  years  which  were 
to  run  their  course  from  the  time  when  the  edict  to  rebuild 
Jerusalem  went  forth  until  the  appearance  of  the  Messiah 
upon  the  earth.  I  do  not  know  what  to  make  of  all  this. 
I  frankly  acknowledge  that  it  baffles  me  to  find  a  reason  for 
it.  I  merely  state  the  fact,  and  leave  you  to  ponder  it  for 
yourselves,  that  you  may  learn  how  much  there  is  not  only 
in  prophecy,  but  also  in  history,  which  lies  beyond  our  ken. 
The  two  other  dates  referred  to  in  verses  eleventh  and 
twelfth  may  be  thus  explained.  The  profanation  of  the 
Temple  by  Antiochus  continued  from  the  month  I  jar,  of  the 
year  168  b.c,  till  the  restoration  of  the  worship  by  Judas 
Maccabaeus  on  the  twenty-fifth  day  of  the  ninth  month,  165 
B.C.  This,  according  to  the  Seleucid  era,  occupied  twelve 
hundred  and  ninety  days.     Forty  five  days  more  bring  us  to 

*  Rev.  xii.,  14. 


214  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

the  month  Shebat,  of  164  b.c,  in  which  Antiochus  died — so 
ending  for  the  time  the  miseries  of  the  people.  Thus  the 
thousand  three  hundred  and  five -and -thirty  days  are  ac- 
counted for.* 

If  any  choose  to  regard  all  this  as  being  not  only  applica- 
ble to  Antiochus,  but  also,  through  him,  typical  of  the  New 
Testament  Antichrist,  and  should  take  the  days  in  the  his- 
tory of  the  one  for  years  in  the  history  of  the  other,  I  have 
only  to  say  that  I  find  nothing,  either  here  or  in  the  New 
Testament,  to  sanction  such  a  procedure.  For  me,  the  in- 
terpretation which  I  have  endeavored  to  give  is  sufficient. 
They  who  go  further  leave  the  domain  of  certainty  for  that 
of  speculation,  and  the  very  number  of  their  conflicting  in- 
terpretations is  a  warning  to  every  expositor  not  to  venture 
beyond  his  depth  into  these  dark  waters.  For  myself,  I  am 
content  to  stand  upon  the  shore  and  wait,  like  him  to  whom 
were  first  addressed  these  reassuring  words,  "  Go  thy  way ; 
for  thou  shalt  rest,  and  stand  in  thy  lot  at  the  end  of  the 
days." 

But  though  there  may  be  some  difference  of  opinion  as  to 
the  interpretation  of  the  prophecies  contained  in  this  chap- 
ter, there  can  be  no  controversy  among  Christians  as  to  the 
lessons  of  comfort  and  encouragement  which  God's  people 
in  every  age  may  draw  from  its  verses.  I  name  now  only 
the  three  most  prominent.  We  have,  in  the  first  place,  the 
hope  of  the  suffering  saint.  "  Many  of  them  that  sleep  in 
the  dust  of  the  earth  shall  awake,  some  to  everlasting  life, 
and  some  to  shame  and  everlasting  contempt."  The  doc- 
trine of  the  resurrection  of  the  dead  does  not  come  very  dis- 
tinctly out  in  the  earlier  portions  of  the  Old  Testament.  It 
is  alluded  to  in  some  of  the  Psalms,  and  is  referred  to  with 


*  See   "  Critical    and    Experimental    Commentary,"   by   Jamieson : 
Fausset  &  Brown.     Vol.  iv.,  in  loco. 


The  Epilogue  to  the  Vision.  215 

somewhat  more  precision  in  the  Book  of  Isaiah ;  while  the 
miracles  of  Elijah  and  Elisha  must  have  made  many  minds 
among  the  nation  familiar  with  the  idea.  But  here,  for  al- 
most the  first  time,  it  is  broadly  asserted,  and  that  in  such  a 
way  as  to  connect  it  with  retribution,  and  make  it  an  en- 
couragement to  fidelity  under  trial.  Under  the  old  cove- 
nant, the  sanctions  of  the  divine  law  were  mainly  temporal. 
The  blessings  promised,  and  the  punishments  threatened, 
had  reference,  for  the  most  part,  to  the  life  that  now  is.  But 
here  we  have  an  approximation  to  the  New  Testament  way 
of  treating  such  subjects,  and  those  who  are  enduring  trial 
are  exhorted  to  look  beyond  the  present,  and  to  rely  that,  in 
the  future  life,  there  shall  be  for  them  a  reward  as  exalted 
as  their  sufferings  have  been  severe.  Of  the  Lord  himself 
it  is  said  that,  because  he  humbled  himself  to  the  death  of 
the  cross,  therefore  God  hath  highly  exalted  him  ;  and  they 
who  in  his  service,  and  for  their  adherence  to  his  laws,  are 
oppressed  and  persecuted  in  this  world,  may  depend  upon 
it  that  in  the  life  that  is  to  come  they  shall  rise  to  everlast- 
ing honor.  Not  always  shall  might  be  triumphant  and  truth 
lie  torn  and  bleeding  in  the  streets ;  not  always  shall  the 
wicked  prosper,  and  the  righteous  perish  at  the  hands  of 
cruel  and  unprincipled  men.  In  the  day  when  those  "  who 
sleep  in  the  dust  of  the  earth  shall  awake,"  all  these  appar- 
ent anomalies  shall  be  rectified.  Then  the  right  shall  come 
uppermost.  Then  justice  shall  be  done.  Then  shall  the 
crown  be  given  to  those  who  on  earth  were  nailed  to  the 
cross  of  ignominy,  or  trampled  under  the  heel  of  oppression ; 
while  the  wicked,  who  on  earth  seemed  so  exalted,  shall 
have  as  his  portion  "  shame  and  everlasting  contempt." 

Thus,  viewed  in  connection  with  the  final  judgment,  the 
doctrine  of  the  resurrection  of  the  dead  is  not  only  a  sup- 
port to  those  who  are  suffering  wrongfully,  but  also  a  warn- 
ing to  all  who  are  dealing  unrighteously  with  God  and  his 


2i6  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

people.  The  present  life  is  connected  most  intimately  and 
inseparably  with  that  which  is  to  come.  Now  is  for  every 
one  of  us  the  germ  of  hereafter ;  and  "  whatsoever  a  man 
soweth  "  on  earth,  "that  shall  he  also  reap  "  in  the  future 
state.  The  awards  to  be  made  on  the  day  of  resurrection 
are  not  things  of  caprice.  They  are  the  outcome  and  devel- 
opment of  the  characters  which  we  have  formed  and  the  con- 
duct which  we  have  practised  in  the  life  of  probation  which 
has  been  granted  us  on  earth.  Our  future  destiny  will  be, 
in  the  case  of  each  of  us,  as  much  the  natural  outgrowth  of 
our  present  character  as  the  ripened  stalk  is  of  the  corn  of 
wheat  which  we  cast  into  the  soil.  We  often  speak  of  the 
day  of  judgment,  indeed,  as  the  day  for  which  all  other  days 
were  made ;  but  it  would  be  more  correct  to  call  it  that 
which  all  other  days  are  making.  It  will  make  nothing  new. 
It  will  only  reveal  and  make  indelible  the  results  of  the  old. 
We  are  making  it  now.  We  are  even  at  this  present  time 
laying  up  for  ourselves  eternal  glory  or  everlasting  contempt. 

"The  tissue  of  the  life  to  be,  we  weave  with  colors  all  our  own, 
And  in  the  field  of  destiny  we  reap  as  we  have  sown  ; 
Still  shall  the  soul  around  it  call  the  shadows  which  it  gathered  here, 
And,  painted  on  the  eternal  wall,  the  past  shall  reappear." 

Oh,  my  brethren,  with  what  importance  does  this  consid- 
eration invest  the  present  life!  Every  thought  we  think, 
every  action  we  perform,  every  word  we  speak,  every  oppor- 
tunity of  usefulness  improved  or  neglected,  is  a  seed  sown 
by  us,  the  fruit  of  which  shall  meet  us  either  in  richest  bless- 
ing or  in  untold  misery,  in  the  eternity  into  w'hich  w-e  go. 
And  yet,  how  little  we  think  of  all  this,  and  how  seldom  we 
act  under  the  influence  w-hich  these  truths  are  fitted  to  pro- 
duce and  foster  within  us  ! 

In  the  stirring  days  of  English  martyrology,  we  read  of 
one  eminent  victim,  that  when  he  had  been  brought  from  his 


The  Epilogue  to  the  Vision.  217 

dungeon  to  a  magnificent  chamber  hung  all  around  with  rich- 
est tapestry,  and  was  being  gradually  drawn  into  a  conversa- 
tion concerning  himself  and  his  fellow-confessors,  he  heard 
the  sound  of  the  nib  of  a  pen  moving  upon  paper  behind  the 
arras,  as  if  one  were  writing  there  in  concealment,  and  in  a 
moment  he  became  silent,  for  well  he  knew  that  a  thought- 
less word  might  bring  down  upon  himself  or  upon  his  com- 
panions the  severest  woes.  But,  brethren,  though  we  hear 
it  not,  a  record  of  all  we  think  and  say  and  do  is  being 
taken ;  yea,  we  ourselves  are  writing  it  on  the  tablets  of  our 
memories  and  hearts — and  the  effects  shall  be  eternal.  What 
need,  then,  of  prudence  and  prayerfulness,  that  so  these  con- 
sequences may  bring  to  us  eternal  life,  and  not  shame  and 
everlasting  contempt.  It  is  told  of  Zeuxis,  the  famous  paint- 
er, that  he  was  remarkable  for  the  pains  which  he  bestowed 
upon  his  works,  and  that  on  one  occasion,  when  he  was  ac- 
cused of  being  long  in  drawing  his  lines,  and  slow  in  the 
use  of  his  pencil,  he  replied,  "  I  am  long  in  doing  what  I 
take  in  hand,  because  I  want  to  do  it  with  care ;  for  what  I 
paint,  I  paint  for  eternity."  Beloved,  shall  this  be  so  in  the 
case  of  one  seeking  permanent  earthly  fame  ?  and  shall  not 
we  be  infinitely  more  careful  in  our  words  and  ways,  know- 
ing that  we  are  making  ourselves  for  eternity  ?  Let  us  see 
to  it  that  we  so  finish  our  life-work  here  that  when  we  are 
confronted  with  it  on  the  resurrection  morn,  we  may  not  be 
filled  with  everlasting  shame  ;  and  to  this  end,  let  us  live  for 
Christ ;  for  where  he  is,  there  is  life  and  glory. 

But  we  have  here,  secondly,  the  reward  of  the  working 
saint.  "  They  that  be  wise  shall  shine  as  the  brightness  of 
the  firmament;  and  they  that  turn  many  to  righteousness, 
as  the  stars  for  ever  and  ever."  I  do  not  know  whether  there 
be  any  implied  comparison  here  between  the  wise  and  those 
who  turn  many  to  righteousness,  or  whether  the  design  of 
the  angel  is  to  represent  that  the  glory  of  the  one  tran- 

10 


2i8  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

scends  that  of  the  other.  Possibly  the  two  clauses  may  form 
one  parallelism,  after  the  manner  of  the  Hebrew  poets.  We 
remember,  at  least,  that  Solomon  hath  said,  "  He  that  win- 
neth  souls  is  wise ;"  and  perhaps  the  celestial  speaker  here 
refers  to  the  same  class  of  persons  in  both  the  expressions 
which  he  has  employed.  But  however  that  question  may 
be  decided,  I  take  out  of  the  verse  what  is  undeniably  in  it, 
when  I  say  that  they  who  turn  many  to  righteousness  will 
be  honored  with  bright  and  particular  glory  in  the  heavenly 
state.  "  They  shine  as  the  stars  for  ever  and  ever."  Here 
is  the  grand  aim  toward  which  Christian  ambition  should  be 
directed.  If  there  be  any  rivalry  or  competition  among  us, 
it  ought  to  be,  as  to  which  of  us  shall  convert  the  greatest 
number  of  sinners  "  from  the  error  of  their  ways,"  and  shine 
the  most  lustrously  in  the  firmament  of  the  future.  Earthly 
ambition  seeks  to  gain  something  for  itself,  and  too  often 
it  rises  to  its  greatest  elevation  by  trampling  others  down ; 
but  the  glory  of  the  Christian  is  to  be  attained  by  saving 
and  serving  men.  Here  is  the  law :  "  He  that  will  be  great- 
est among  you,  let  him  be  your  servant ;  even  as  the  Son  of 
man  came,  not  to  be  ministered  unto,  but  to  minister,  and 
to  give  his  life  a  ransom  for  many."  This  is  the  great  fun- 
damental distinction  bet^\'een  the  world-kingdoms  of  which 
in  this  book  so  much  has  been  said,  and  the  kingdom  of 
Christ,  by  which,  at  length,  they  are  all  to  be  superseded. 

Among  the  nations  of  the  earth  decorations  and  honors 
are  given  to  those  who  have  done  the  greatest  work  of  de- 
struction. Nebuchadnezzar,  Cyrus,  Alexander,  Ccesar,  all 
rose  to  their  proud  pre-eminence  through  the  crushing  force 
of  that  physical  power  which  they  brought  to  bear  upon 
their  rivals.  They  waded  through  blood  to  their  thrones ; 
and  the  steps  up  which  they  mounted  to  their  elevation 
consisted  of  the  bodies  of  their  prostrate  foes.  But  in  the 
kingdom  of  Christ  it  is  far  otherwise.     The  places  of  pre- 


The  Epilogue  to  the  Vision.  219 

eminence  under  him  are  assigned  to  those  who  have  been 
likest  him  in  the  holiness  of  their  characters,  in  the  self- 
sacrifice  of  their  lives,  and  in  the  hallowing  and  ennobling 
influence  which  they  have  shed  around  them.  They  who 
have  done  the  most  in  the  diffusion  of  righteousness,  by 
their  own  character  and  efforts  ;  they  who  have  fought,  not 
with  carnal  weapons,  but  with  spiritual,  against  cruelty  and 
wrong,  and  injustice,  and  iniquity  of  every  form ;  they  who, 
by  the  diffusion  of  the  light  of  the  Gospel,  and  through  the 
might  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  have  been  instrumental  in  trans- 
forming the  greatest  number  of  their  fellows  from  the  vota- 
ries of  wickedness  into  the  followers  of  righteousness  :  these 
are  they  who  shall  sit  nearest  the  throne  of  Jesus  when  he 
Cometh  in  his  kingdom. 

Oh,  what  a  firmament  is  that  wherein  these  orbs  are 
placed,  and  by  how  many  "bright  particular  stars"  is  it  al- 
ready gemmed !  There  are  Paul  and  Peter,  and  John  and 
Timothy,  and  Polycarp  and  Chrysostom,  and  Augustine  and 
Athanasius,  and  Luther  and  Latimer,  and  Calvin  and  Knox, 
and  Wesley  and  Whitefield,  and  McCheyne  and  Burns,  and 
Edwards  and  Payson,  and  Nettleton  and  Harlan  Page. 
There,  too,  are  multitudes  who,  unassuming  and  almost  un- 
known on  earth,  kept  working  on,  their  grandeur  and  noble- 
ness revealed  to  themselves  only  when  they  went  into  the 
Saviour's  presence.  My  brethren,  is  there  nothing  here  to 
attract  you  ?  What  are  all  the  titles  and  rewards  of  earth, 
compared  with  this  undying  honor  from  the  hand  of  Christ  ? 
Be  it  yours  to  strive  for  that.  Let  no  difficulty  appal  you ; 
let  no  danger  keep  you  back ;  let  righteousness  be  the  gir- 
dle of  your  own  loins,  and  live  to  make  others  righteous 
through  the  diffusion  of  the  Gospel  of  regeneration  and 
holiness.  "  Get  all  the  good  you  can,  do  all  the  good  you 
can,  to  all  that  you  can,  and  as  long  as  you  can  ;"  and  then, 
when  you  go  hence,  you  will  be  greeted  with  the  welcome. 


2  20  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

"  Well  done,  good  and  faithful  servant :  enter  thou  into  the 
joy  of  thy  Lord." 

Finally,  we  have  here  the  rest  of  the  waiting  saint :  "  Go 
thou  thy  way  till  the  end  be :  for  thou  shalt  rest,  and  stand  in 
thy  lot  at  the  end  of  the  days."  How  prone  we  are  to  trou- 
ble ourselves  about  the  future  !  Yea,  even  after  we  have  re- 
ceived the  assurances  which  God  has  given  us  in  his  word, 
we  are  apt,  like  Daniel,  to  cry,  "What  shall  be  the  end  of 
these  things  ?"  We  may  be  worried  about  personal  affairs'; 
we  may  be  distressed  about  the  after -lot  of  our  children; 
or,  with  a  degree  of  public  spirit,  we  may  be  anxious  about 
what  shall  emerge  either  in  the  State  or  in  the  Church. 
Now,  to  each  of  those  who  are  in  this  uncomfortable  condi- 
tion of  heart,  provided  they  be  the  people  of  God,  we  are 
warranted  to  say,  "  Go  thou  thy  way  till  the  end  be  :  for 
thou  shalt  rest,  and  stand  in  thy  lot  at  the  end  of  the  days." 
Do  not  disquiet  yourself  about  the  future.  Leave  that  in 
God's  hands.  You  shall  rest  in  him  during  the  remainder  of 
your  life  on  earth ;  and  when  that  shall  end,  you  shall  rest 
with  him.  Nay,  more ;  at  the  consummation  of  all  things 
you  shall  stand  in  your  lot,  having  God  himself  as  your  in- 
heritance. Nothing  can  really  harm  us  if  we  are  united  to 
God,  through  faith  in  Jesus  Christ.  What  says  Paul  ? — and 
he  had  passed  through  trials  enough  before  he  wrote  the 
words,  so  that  we  may  regard  him  as  speaking  with  the  au- 
thority of  experience — "  I  am  persuaded  that  neither  death, 
nor  life,  nor  angels,  nor  principalities,  nor  powers,  nor  things 
present,  nor  things  to  come,  nor  height,  nor  depth,  nor  any 
other  creature,  shall  be  able  to  separate  us  from  the  love 
of  God  which  is  in  Christ  Jesus  our  Lord."  Let  us  wait 
patiently,  therefore,  upon  him.  Though  things  around  us 
may  seem  full  of  threatening,  God  is  over  all ;  though  things 
within  us  may  be  tremulous  and  desponding,  God  is  in  us, 
and  he  will  be  our  strength  ;  though  things  before  us  may 


The  Epilogue  to  the  Vision.  221 

look  dark  and  lowering,  God  will  go  forward  with  us,  and 
make  all  safe  for  us.  Why,  then,  should  we  be  afraid  ? 
Go  thy  way,  forlorn  and  weary  one.  Go  thy  way,  and  rest 
in  God.  Let  him  think  and  plan  for  thee ;  and  then  when 
the  end  of  the  days  shall  come,  thou  shalt  be  found  in  the 
lot  of  heaven's  inheritance.  Trust  in  God,  for  that  is  rest 
on  earth.  Wait  on  God,  and  he  will  give  thee  the  higher 
rest  of  the  better  land. 


XIII. 

THE  CHARACTER   OF  DANIEL, 

Daniel  x.,  ii. 

"O  Daniel,  a  man  greatly  beloved." 

OUR  later  studies  in  this  book  have  been  so  entirely 
devoted  to  the  wonderful  series  of  predictions  with 
which  it  concludes,  that  we  have,  to  some  extent,  lost  sight 
of  the  man  to  whom  these  prophecies  were  communicated 
at  the  first,  and  by  whom  they  were  transmitted  to  others. 
It  is  fitting,  therefore,  that  in  closing  our  series  of  discourses 
on  this  portion  of  the  Word  of  God,  and  while  yet  the  re- 
corded incidents  of  Daniel's  life  are  fresh  in  our  recollec- 
tion, we  should  endeavor  to  give  you  some  analysis  of  his 
character  as  that  has  revealed  itself  to  us  during  our  exam- 
ination of  his  work. 

That  work  was  as  noble  as  it  was  peculiar.  Called,  at 
the  beginning  of  the  Babylonian  Captivity,  to  witness  for 
Jehovah,  he  was  honored  to  maintain  a  blameless  record 
throughout  the  entire  seventy  years  of  the  exile,  and  to  take 
a  principal  part  in  the  events  which  led  to  the  famous  edict 
of  Cyrus,  by  which  permission  was  given  to  the  Jews  to  re- 
turn to  their  own  land.  He  lived  thus  through  a  critical  era 
in  the  history  of  his  nation.  He  was  tried  by  adversity,  and 
by  the  more  searching  test  of  sudden  prosperity ;  yet  he  was 
always  true  to  the  convictions  of  his  conscience,  and  faithful 
to  the  commandments  of  his  God.  Though  in  the  world 
of  Babylon,  he  was  not  of  it;  his  heart  was  ever. holding 
fellowship  with  Jehovah ;  and  the  temptations  to  honor  and 


The  Character  of  Daniel.  223 

emolument  were  as  impotent  to  move  him  as  were  the  flames 
of  the  furnace  or  the  lions  of  the  den. 

One  cannot  read  the  earlier  chapters  of  this  book  without 
having  recalled  to  memory  another  exile  in  another  land, 
who  through  the  same  "  patient  continuance  in  well-doing," 
under  suffering  and  temptation,  rose  to  the  second  position 
in  the  State,  and  lived  to  be  the  savior  of  his  people  in  a 
time  of  strait.  Of  Daniel,  as  of  Joseph,  it  was  true  that  "the 
Lord  gave  him  favor  in  the  sight "  of  those  who  were  above 
him,  and  raised  him  to  honor  through  the  interpretation  of 
a  monarch's  dreams  ;  and  of  both  alike  it  might  be  said  that 
they  wore 

■^  "  The  white  flower  of  a  blameless  life, 

In  that  fierce  light  which  beats  upon  a  throne. 
And  blackens  every  blot." 

But  when  we  come  upon  such  an  expression  as  that  which 
I  have  chosen  as  my  text,  we  are  made  to  think  of  "  that 
disciple  whom  Jesus  loved,"  and  who  "  leaned  upon  his 
breast "  at  the  Last  Supper,  rather  than  of  any  Old  Testa- 
ment worthy.  And  indeed  there  are  many  points  of  resem- 
blance between  these  two  seers.  Both  were  peculiarly  dear 
to  the  heart  of  God ;  and  because  "  the  secret  of  the  Lord 
is  with  them  that  fear  him,"  to  both  were  revealed  more 
clearly  than  to  others  "  the  things  which  are  written  "  in  the 
book  of  the  divine  purposes.  In  their  relation  to  their  fel- 
low-servants they  occupied  a  position  of  remarkable  simi- 
larity. If,  among  the  evangelists,  Matthew  may  be  said  to 
have  had  the  face  of  the  ox,  and  Mark  that  of  the  lion,  and 
Luke  that  of  the  man,  to  John  must  be  ascribed  that  of  the 
eagle,  whose  eye  looks  undazzled  at  the  brightness  of  the  ■' 
sun,  and  sees  afar  the  minutest  objects  with  distinctness. 
But  the  same  is  true  of  Daniel,  as  connected  with  Isaiah, 
Jeremiah,  and  Ezekiel.  The  son  of  Amos  is  the  ox,  with 
his  patient,  plodding  endurance ;  Jeremiah  is  the  man,  with 


2  24  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

the  tear  of  sorrow  in  his  eye,  or  the  tone  of  denunciation  in 
his  speech ;  Ezekiel  is  the  Hon,  with  his  mien  of  majesty 
and  voice  of  thunder ;  but  Daniel  is  the  eagle,  "  whose  nest 
is  on  high,"  and  "whose  eyes  behold  afar  off." 

Yet,  reminding  us  though  he  does  of  John,  the  beloved 
disciple  and  apocalyptic  seer,  Daniel  has  an  official  great- 
ness distinct  even  from  that  of  the  prophet  of  Patmos.  His 
predictions  took  their  character  from  his  position  in  life. 
He  was  educated  in  earthly  kingdoms,  that  he  might  tell  of 
the  higher  greatness  of  the  kingdom  of  Christ.  We  owe  to 
him,  more  than  to  any  others  of  his  brethren  in  the  Old  Tes- 
tament, our  ideas  of  the  royalty  of  Jesus.  His  "prophetic 
watch-tower," as  Auberlen  has  finely  said,  "was  erected  be- 
side the  throne  of  Babylon  ;  and  standing  there  in,  and  yet 
above,  the  first  world-monarchy,  he  looked  out  into  the  far- 
thest future,  and  discerned  with  prophetic  eye,  which  God 
had  opened,  the  changing  shapes  and  events  of  coming  king- 
doms,"* and  the  growing  glory  and  ultimate  triumph  of  the 
kingdom  of  Christ.  Thus  his  distinctive  prophetic  mission 
grew  out  of,  or  was  grafted  upon,  his  position  in  public  life  ; 
but  that,  again,  was  the  result  of  his  personal  character  j  and 
so  we  are  led  most  naturally  to  the  consideration  of  his  in- 
dividual peculiarities. 

Among  these  I  mention,  first,  his  early  piety.  We  know 
little  of  his  parents.  It  comes  out  incidentally  that  he  was 
of  the  seed-royal ;  but  he  was  taken  away  from  his  home, 
and  from  his  country,  while  yet  he  v/as  a  boy.  As  we  saw 
in  our  first  lecture,  he  could  not  have  been  more  than  four- 
teen years  of  age  when,  with  his  three  companions,  he  was 
sent  to  be  educated  at  the  college  of  the  Chaldeans.  Yet 
even  then  he  had  learned  to  love  Jehovah,  and  to  make  the 
divine  law  the  rule  of  his  life.     Now,  I  am  particular  in  giv- 

*  "Daniel  and  the  Revelation,"  by  Carl  August  Auberlen,  etc.,  p.  2i. 


The  Character  of  Daniel.  225 

ing  prominence  to  this  fact ;  for  it  has  come  to  be  believed 
by  the  young  people  of  our  day  that  early  piety  is  a  simper- 
ing, sentimental  thing,  betokening  the  existence  in  its  subject 
both  of  physical  and  mental  weakness.  Much  of  this  com- 
mon and  pernicious  heresy  must,  I  fear,  be  traced  to  the  in- 
fluence of  our  popular  Sunday-school  literature  ;  for  in  the 
books  which  are  put  into  the  hands  of  our  children  it  is  too 
often  the  case  that  when  we  read  of  a  winning  and  obedient 
child,  who  is  distinguished  for  purity  and  devotion  to  God, 
we  find  that  his  life  came  to  a  premature  end.  Thus  the 
idea  is  fostered  that  when  one  becomes,  in  the  years  of  his 
boyhood,  an  earnest  Christian,  he  is  "too  good  for  this 
world,"  and  is  removed  as  soon  as  maybe  to  a  better.  Now, 
such  books  are  pre-eminently  unhealthy,  because  they  are 
untrue  ;  and  the  mischief  is  that,  in  the  great  majority  of 
instances,  they  repel  their  readers  from  religion  altogether. 
Our  young  people  do  not  want  to  become  Christians  if  their 
history  is  to  be  of  that  sort.  They  are  conscious  of  the  pos- 
session of  overflowing  vitality,  and  they  have,  besides,  the 
natural,  and  indeed  laudable,  ambition  to  do  something  in 
the  world.  They  shrink  from  a  life  of  physical  weakness, 
and  from  an  early  death ;  and  therefore  they  should  be  told 
not  simply  of  the  piety  of  those  who  have  died  in  childhood, 
but  also,  and  even  more  fully,  of  that  of  those  Avho  lived,  it 
may  be,  to  a  good  old  age,  and  who  were  honored  to  do 
good  and  noble  service  for  God  and  for  their  generation. 
Now,  this  is  to  them  a  very  great  attraction  in  the  history 
of  Daniel.  He  gave  himself  to  the  Lord  while  he  was  a 
boy,  yet  he  lived  to  be  well-nigh  ninety  years  old. 

And  his  piety  did  not  interfere  with  his  pre-eminence. 
He  was,  shall  I  say?  the  valedictorian  of  his  year.  He 
held  all  through  the  very  highest  place  in  his  class,  and  was 
not  the  less  distinguished  as  a  student  because  he  was  so 
prominent  in  the  matter  of  religion.     Nay,  his  elevation,  as 

10* 


2  26  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

we  see  in  the  various  incidents  of  his  career,  was  closely 
connected  with  his  piety.  No  doubt  he  had  to  suffer  for 
his  religion  ;  for  it  was  true  then,  as  it  is  now,  that  all  who 
will  live  godly  in  the  world  must  suffer  persecution  of  some 
sort;  but  still  he  proved  it  to  be  true  that  "godliness  is 
profitable  unto  all  things,  having  promise  of  the  life  that 
now  is,  and  of  that  which  is  to  come."  Nor  was  there  any 
element  of  feebleness  about  him.  He  was  healthy  alike  in 
body  and  in  mind ;  and  in  his  conduct  in  the  matter  of  the 
meat  and  the  wine  that  came  from  the  royal  table,  there 
were  those  characteristics  of  pluck  and  manliness  Vv'hich 
have  always  been  so  attractive  and  so  stimulating  to  young 
men.  He  had  the  courage  not  only  to  have  convictions,  but 
also  to  act  upon  them ;  and  that  courage,  so  far  from  stand- 
ing in  the  way  of  his  promotion,  was  one  of  the  things  which 
contributed  to  it. 

I  desire,  therefore,  to  call  the  attention  of  my  youthful 
hearers  to  these  points.  .You  will  make  a  terrible  mistake 
if  you  suppose  that  piety  unfits  you  for  life,  or  imagine  that 
its  existence  in  youth  is  an  abnormal  thing  that  indicates 
the  presence  of  disease.  Believe  me,  there  is  nothing  so 
healthy,  or  so  wholesome,  as  to  give  yourselves  early  to  the 
Lord.  It  will  lay  in  you  the  foundation  of  a  vigorous  and 
energetic  character.  It  will  bring  the  highest  of  all  motives 
to  bear  alike  upon  education,  recreation,  and  business,  and 
enable  you  to  make  the  very  best  of  yourselves  for  God  and 
for  your  fellow-men.  It  will  secure  for  you  all  that  is  best 
worth  having  in  the  world,  while,  along  with  that,  you  will 
have  the  enjoyment  of  God's  favor,  and  the  prospect  of 
heaven's  happiness.  For  the  case  of  Daniel  is  not  ex- 
ceptional. You  have  the  same  things  illustrated  in  the 
lives  of  Joseph  and  Moses  and  Samuel,  and  in  some  degree, 
also,  in  that  of  Timothy ;  while,  if  you  care  to  look  around 
you  and  inquire  into  the  histories  of  many  of  those  among 


The  Character  of  Daniel.  227 

ourselves  who  are  most  loved  and  trusted  by  their  fellow- 
citizens,  you  will  discover  that  they  also  have  "  feared  God 
from  their  youth." 

Nor  can  I  refrain  from  adding  that,  in  all  such  individ- 
uals, there  is  a  full,  rounded  completeness  of  character,  a 
well-balanced  equilibrium  of  disposition,  which  you  look  for 
in  vain  in  those  who  have  been  converted  in  later  life.  In 
these  last,  indeed,  you  will  often  find  some  marked  excel- 
lences. They  will  be  very  earjriest  and  enihiisiastic ;  they 
may  be  very  liberal,  and  self-sacrificing ;  but  there  is  usual- 
ly in  them  also  some  prominent  angularity,  which  mars  the 
rotundity  of  their  nature,  and  prevents  them  from  doing  or 
enjoying  as  much  as  those  who,  like  Daniel,  have  been  from 
their  boyhood  devoted  to  the  Lord. 

From  every  point  of  view,  therefore,  the  history  of  Daniel 
is  encouraging  to  the  young.  It  bids  them  consecrate  them- 
selves to  the  Saviour  ere  yet  "  the  cares  of  the  world,"  or 
"  the  deceitfulness  of  riches,"  or  the  engagements  of  busi- 
ness have  stolen  away  their  hearts.  "**J«t  shows  them  that  the 
world's  prizes  may  be  gained  by  one  who  means  to  lay  them 
in  the  lap  of  Christ.  It  proves  to  them  that  manliness  is 
by  no  means  incompatible  with  godliness,  and  that  the  lofti- 
est intellectual  culture  may  be  reached  while  yet  the  stu- 
dent is  sitting  lowly  at  the  feet  of  Jesus  ;  while,  on  the  other 
side,  it  is  full  of  loftiest  inspiration  to  parents  and  teachers. 
There  are  those  who  sneer  at  piety  in  boyhood,  as  if  it 
would  soon  die  out,  and  leave  the  soul  more  hardened  than 
it  would  have  been  if  no  such  emotions  had  ever  entered  it. 
But  who  will  sneer  at  Daniel  ?  Were  not  his  parents  more 
than  rewarded  for  their  exertions  in  his  early  religious  train- 
ing by  the  noble  stand  he  made,  and  the  lofty  elevation  he 
reached  ?  And  when,  though  he  could  then  have  been  no 
more  than  forty  years  of  age,  Ezekiel  the  prophet  singled 
him  out  for  special  commendation,  placing  him  beside  Noah 


228  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

and  Job,  was  there  not  given  the  strongest  possible  endorse- 
ment to  the  efforts  and  the  prayers  of  those  who  are  seek- 
ing the  early  conversion  of  their  children  ?  "  The  man 
greatly  beloved  "  began  himself  to  love  God  in  his  boyhood. 
I  mention,  secondly,  among  Daniel's  characteristics,  his 
devoutness  in  the  closet.  This  comes  out  first  in  con- 
nection with  the  recovery  and  interpretation  of  Nebuchad- 
nezzar's forgotten  dream ;  for  then  not  only  did  he  engage 
his  three  friends  to  pray  on  his  behalf,  but  he  also  himself 
poured  out  his  heart  in  thanksgiving  to  Jehovah.  "NBut  it 
was  the  habit  of  his  life  to  wait  at  stated  times  on  God ;  for 
when  his  enemies  prevailed  on  Darius  to  issue  that  decree 
which  forbade  any  one  to  pray  save  unto  the  king,  we  are 
told  that  "he  kneeled  upon  his  knees  three  times  a  day, 
and  prayed,  and  gave  thanks  before  his  God,  as  aforetime." 
His  custom  was  to  observe  these  appointed  seasons  of  de- 
votion ;  and  from  the  record  which  we  have  in  the  ninth 
chapter  of  his  study  of  the  prophecies  of  Jeremiah,  we  are 
warranted  in  concluding  that  when  he  was  in  his  closet,  he 
gave  himself  to  meditation  on  the  Sacred  Scriptures,  as  well 
as  to  earnest  supplication.  This  helps  to  explain  much  of 
his  conduct.  -^  We  cease  to  wonder  at  his  boldness  before 
Nebuchadnezzar,  Belshazzar,  and  Darius,  when  we  learn 
that  he  maintained  such  constant  communion  with  his  God. 
The  roots  of  his  character  were  "  mellowed  and  fattened  " 
by  the  dews  of  heavenly  influence  which  fell  upon  them 
in  the  closet.  ^  He  drew  his  strength  from  the  heaven  with 
which  he  was  in  such  continuous  communication.  He  was 
"  Daniel,"  the  judge  of  God ;  because  he  was  first  "Israel,"  a 
prince  of  God,  who  prevailed  with  him  in  prayer.  His  pub- 
lic life  was  holy  and  incorruptible,  because  his  hidden  life 
was  prayerful  and  devout.  He  carried  his  business  habits 
with  him  into  the  closet ;  and  so  he  was  enabled  to  carry 
his  devout  spirit  with  him  into  business.     His  life  was  not 


The  Character  of  Daniel.  229 

divided  into  two  portions,  separated  from  each  other  like 
the  water-tight  compartments  in  a  ship  ;  but  it  was  one  and 
the  same  everywliere.  In  the  closet,  he  was  transacting 
business  with  God ;  in  the  presidential  bureau,  he  was  trans- 
acting business  for  God  ;  and  his  sincerity  in  the  former 
enabled  him  to  maintain  faithfulness  in  the  latter. 

Now,  here  we  may  all  learn  much  from  him.     Amidst  the 
rush  and  hurry  of  our  modern  life,  the  closet  is  apt  to  be 

neglected. 

"The  world  is  too  much  with  us  : 
Getting  and  spending,  we  lay  waste  our  powers." 

And  the  recreative  influence  of  devotional  retirement  is 
neither  sought  nor  valued  as  it  ought  to  be.  But  we  can- 
not go  on  thus  without  deterioration.  Sooner  or  later,  the 
freshness  will  wear  off  from  our  spirits  ;  the  keen  edge  of 
our  consciences  will  be  blunted ;  and  the  general  level  of 
our  conduct  will  be  lowered.  We  need  to  have  our  hearts 
constantly  purified  by  communion  with  God  ;  otherwise  the 
contamination  of  the  world  will  cleave  to  them,  and  they 
will  "  become  subdued  to  that  they  work  in,  like  the  dyer's 
hand."  Hence,  to  counteract  the  influence  of  the  age,  we 
ought  to  give  now  more  than  ever  prominence  to  the  exer- 
cises of  the  closet.  Instead  of  overlaying  the  Bible  with 
other  books,  we  ought  to  go  more  frequently  to  its  refresh- 
ing pages  ;  and  while  we  do  not  in  the  least  disparage  the 
habit  of  ejaculatory  prayer,  we  ought  to  give  more  time  and 
attention  to  supplications  in  the  closet.  They  give  a  tonic 
to  the  piety  of  the  heart,  and  a  stimulus  to  the  life  of  the 
day,  which  we  cannot  miss  without  detriment ;  and  when 
men  tell  us,  as  they  sometimes  do,  that  the  highest  style  of 
living  is  when  we  are  always  in  a  prayerful  spirit,  even  al- 
though we  have  no  set  times  for  devotion,  we  are  tempted 
to  reply  that  it  is  impossible  to  maintain  a  devotional  spirit 
without  having  an  appointed  time  for  its  cultivation. 


230  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

He  whose  apostle  said,  "  Pray  without  ceasing,"  said  him- 
self, "When  thou  prayest,  enter  into  thy  closet,  and  shut 
thy  door ;"  and  the  hour  of  private  devotion  is  as  essential 
to  the  preservation  of  the  spirituality  of  the  day  as  the  holy 
rest  of  the  Sabbath  is  to  the  maintenance  of  the  piety  of 
the  week.  Periodicity  is  one  of  the  laws  of  our  being.  The 
tear  and  wear  of  the  day  needs  to  be  repaired  by  the  sleep 
of  the  night ;  and  the  exhaustion  consequent  upon  labor 
must  be  removed  by  the  taking  of  food  at  regular  and 
stated  intervals.  So,  also,  the  spiritual  waste  of  the  day 
must  be  repaired  by  the  exercises  of  the  closet ;  and  every 
one  who  has  tried  this  specific  can  say  for  himself,  with 
David,  "  He  restoreth  my  soul ;  he  leadeth  me  in  the  paths 
of  righteousness  for  his  name's  sake." 

It  is  no  answer  to  all  this  to  allege  that  the  habits  of  so- 
ciety, and  the  demands  of  business  upon  us,  are  such  that 
we  cannot  find  opportunity  for  retirement.  That  is  only  a 
confession  that  the  necessity  for  it  is  most  urgent ;  for  we 
need  it  the  most  just  then  when  it  is  hardest  to  take  it. 
Hence,  in  these  days,  we  ought  to  value  the  closet  even 
more  than  our  fathers  did.  They  had  abundance  of  lei- 
sure. No  clicking  telegraph  followed  them  everj^vhere  with 
its  messages;  no  whistling  steam-engine  hurried  all  their 
movements ;  the  postman  was  not  forever  ringing  at  their 
doors ;  and  the  clamorous  deputation  was  not  continually 
in  their  parlors  seeking  a  contribution  or  an  address.  Yet 
they  delighted  in  meditation  and  prayer,  and  felt  themselves 
strengthened  by  their  influence.  Oh,  how  much  more  we 
need  them  than  they  did  !  But  how  little  we  plan  for  them, 
and  how  slightly  we  relish  them  !  Brethren,  this  is  all 
wrong.  I  repeat  the  warning :  We  cannot  go  on  at  this 
rate  without  spiritual  deterioration  !  Do  not  tell  me  that 
this  is  2,  practical  age.  It  is  so  only  because  a  thoughtful 
and  devotional  age  preceded  it ;  and  if  we  eliminate  the  de- 


The  Character  of  Daniel.  231 

votion  and  the  meditation  out  of  it,  we  shall  soon  destroy 
its  practicalness.  The  inspiration  which  gives  us  wisdom 
to  discern,  and  ability  to  do,  and  happiness  to  enjoy  our 
work,  comes  from  the  closet,  and  if  we  more  fully  realized 
that  fact,  we  should  more  seldom  be  inclined  to  say,  "  I 
have  no  time  for  private  prayer."  As  well  might  the  manu- 
facturer say  that  he  has  no  time  to  kindle  the  fire  which  is 
to  raise  the  steam  that  is  to  drive  his  machinery !  No  time 
for  the  closet !  Say,  rather,  "  I  have  no  time  to  eat,"  or,  "  I 
have  no  time  to  sleep."  Yea,  let  the  hours  consecrated  to 
secret  fellowship  with  God  be  the  very  last  which  you  will 
allow  either  fashion  or  business  to  crowd  in  upon  or  in- 
fringe. 

I  mention  as  another  distinctive  feature  of  Daniel  his  de- 
cision of  character.  When  the  unclean  articles  of  diet  were 
set  before  him,  he  did  not  hesitate  as  to  the  course  which 
he  would  follow.  Come  what  would,  he  was  determined 
that  he  should  not  touch  them.  True,  he  very  prudently 
made  application  to  the  prince  of  the  eunuchs  in  the  matter. 
Yet  he  had  already  purposed  in  his  heart  that  he  would  not 
defile  himself ;  and  this  conduct  of  his,  in  his  youth,  enables 
us  to  understand  the  valor  of  his  later  life,  when  he  braved 
the  fury  of  the  lions  rather  than  give  up  the  privilege  of 
prayer.  Of  what  good  would  longer  earthly  existence  have 
been,  when  that  which  gave  it  its  charm  and  inspiration  was 
no  longer  to  be  enjoyed  by  him  ?  So  this  habit  of  decision 
grew  up  in  him,  and  was  fed  in  him,  by  the  communion  of 
the  closet,  whereof  we  have  already  spoken.  He  learned 
there  to  look  at  things  as  in  the  sight  of  God  ;  and  he  car- 
ried that  test  with  him  through  life.  He  acted  ''  as  seeing 
him  who  is  invisible."  God  was  more  to  him  than  all  else ; 
and  that  made  it  easy  for  him  to  decide  questions  which  to 
others  would  have  been  difficult,  and  to  brave  dangers  which 
to  others  would  have  been  appalling.      This  sense  of  the 


232  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

divine  presence,  and  assurance  of  the  divine  favor,  lifted  him 
above  the  influences  of  the  world,  and  kept  him  ever  on  the 
side  of  the  right  and  the  true.  It  made  no  matter  what 
men  threatened — God  was  on  his  side ;  and  so  he  was  not 
terrified.  It  made  no  matter  what  men  promised — God  was 
already  his  ;  and  so  it  was  impossible  to  bribe  him.  The 
man  who  had  heard  these  words  from  the  lips  of  Gabriel, 
"  O  man  greatly  beloved,"  could  not  be  allured  by  any 
title  of  worldly  dignity  or  any  token  of  mortal  favor.  He 
lived  above  all  these  things  ;  so  he  could  speak  with  calm 
faithfulness  to  Nebuchadnezzar  and  Belshazzar,  and  look 
with  composure  on  the  lions  of  Darius.  He  saw  not  the 
grandeur  of  the  former  by  reason  of  the  greater  glory  of 
Jehovah ;  and  he  feared  not  the  fury  of  the  latter  by  rea- 
son of  his  confidence  in  the  omnipotence  of  God. 

It  is  easier  to  describe  such  a  life,  and  to  understand  how 
it  could  be  lived,  than  it  is  to  reproduce  it.  And  yet  the 
God  of  Daniel  liveth ;  there  is  no  change  in  him.  Only  we 
lack  the  faith  of  Daniel,  and  from  that  lack  all  our  difficul- 
ties spring.  Could  we  but  "  see  him  who  is  invisible,"  we 
might  rival  him  whose  faith  "  stopped  the  mouths  of  lions." 
The  child  is  brave  when  he  knows  his  father  is  by  his  side  ; 
and  we  should  feel  it  easy  to  do  right,  and  to  brave  danger, 
if  we  could  only  believe  that  God  is  with  us  of  a  truth.  The 
prophet's  servant  understood  his  master's  composure  in  a 
moment  when  his  eyes  were  opened  to  see,  what  his  mas- 
ter's faith  had  seen  all  the  while,  namely,  "  chariots  of  fire 
and  horses  of  fire  round  about  him."  And  if  we  only  be- 
lieve in  the  presence  with  us  of  our  reconciled  God  and 
Father  in  Jesus  Christ,  ^o  bribe  could  allure  us  to  sin,  and 
"no  threat  could  terrify  us  to  commit  iniquity.  "This  is  the 
victory  that  overcometh  the  world,  even  our  faith." 

We  complicate  matters  so  long  as  we  take  into  account 
only  the  opinions  of  men,  or  the  probable  social  results  of 


The  Character  of  Daniel.  233 

our  actions.  But  when  we  see  God,  we  become  indifferent 
to  all  these  things,  and  decide  only  according  to  his  will. 
Is  it  not  so,  my  friends  ?  Do  not  all  our  perplexities  arise 
from  earthly  considerations  .''  Have  we  ever  any  hesitation 
as  to  how  we  ought  to  act  when  we  look  at  the  question  en- 
tirely as  between  us  and  God  ?  And  if  that  be  so,  ought 
we  not  to  acquire  the  habit  of  acting  always  as  seeing  "  him 
who  is  invisible."  Before  him  all  subterfuges  flee,  and  all 
disguises  disappear.  We  cannot  juggle  with  our  consciences 
while  we  feel  that  he  is  near.  We  cannot  parley  with  the 
tempter  while  he  is  at  our  side ;  and  if  he  will  say  to  us  as 
he  did  to  Daniel,  "  O  man  greatly  beloved,"  there  is  no 
longer  any  charm  in  the  applause  of  men  that  shall  win  us 
from  his  allegiance.  Thus  decision  of  character  is  inti- 
mately connected  with — nay,  directly  springs  from — faith  in 
the  presence,  the  protection,  and  the  favor  of  God. 

Young  men,  will  you  lay  that  to  heart  ?  Your  strength  to 
resist  temptation  depends  on  the  positiveness  of  your  con- 
viction that  there  is  a  God,  and  that  he  is  your  God  through 
Jesus  Christ.  Oh,  what  power  would  fill  your  souls,  not 
only  for  withstanding  evil,  but  also  for  cultivating  holiness, 
if  but  you  would  realize  what  Hagar  meant  when  she  said, 
"  Thou,  God,  seest  me  !"  He  whom  she  thus  addressed  was 
no  dogging  detective,  come  to  upbraid  her  with  her  sin,  and 
to  apprehend  her  for  punishment,  but  a  loving  father  who 
gave  to  her  the  soothing  solace  of  his  sympathy,  and  the 
gracious  promise  of  his  love  and  care ;  and  if  we  could  only 
rise  to  the  assurance  that  he  is  our  own  God,  through  Je- 
sus Christ,  we  would  welcome  his  presence  as  a  source  of 
strength  and  an  element  of  power.  It  is  easy  to  decide 
and  to  be  firm  when  we  know  and  believe  that  God  is  near. 

Another  distinctive  feature  of  Daniel  was  his  diligence  in 
business.  As  a  student  his  industry  was  so  great  that  he 
easily  overtopped  his  fellows,  and  in  the  management  of 


234  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

imperial  affairs  he  developed  a  faculty  for  organization,  and 
evinced  an  energy  and  perseverance  that  were  beyond  all 
praise.  After  a  time  of  devotion,  we  read  that  "he  arose 
and  did  the  king's  business ;"  and  the  principles  on  which 
he  conducted  the  department  that  was  entrusted  to  his  care 
may  be  inferred  from  the  fact  that,  when  his  enemies  sought 
an  occasion  against  him,  they  could  find  nothing  wrong  in 
his  office,  and  had  to  endeavor  to  entrap  him  in  the  matter 
of  his  God.  He  had  his  ups  and  downs,  like  others,  but  in 
the  main  he  was  what  even  the  world  would  call  a  success- 
ful man,  and  his  prosperity  was  not  the  result  of  any  acci- 
dent, but  was  the  consequence  of  the  perseverance  and  in- 
tegrity by  which  he  was  distinguished. 

Nor  is  it  at  all  unimportant,  in  these  days,  that  promi- 
nence should  be  given  to  these  facts.  For  the  common  idea 
among  many  is  that  religion  and  business  are  incompatible. 
If  one  have  the  reputation  of  being  a  godly  man,  he  is  at 
once  written  down  as  unfitted  for  the  highest  kind  of  com- 
mercial success.  On  the  other  hand,  if  one  have  risen  to  em- 
inence in  mercantile  life,  it  is  supposed  that  he  cannot  be 
a  very  devout  man ;  and  if  he  make  the  profession  of  be- 
ing so,  he  is  summarily  characterized  as  a  hypocrite.  Now, 
these  ideas  are  as  injurious  to  business  as  they  are  to  re- 
ligion, and  I  am  glad  to  have  so  excellent  an  opportunity 
of  denouncing  them  as  false,  Daniel  was  no  hypocrite,  and 
yet  he  rose,  deservedly,  to  the  highest  position  which  Baby- 
lon had  to  give.  And,  when  we  look  at  the  matter  candidly, 
we  must  admit  that  religion,  so  far  from  being  inimical  to 
his  business  success,  was  a  powerful  and  important  factor 
in  its  production. 

Why  should  the  cultivation  of  the  heart  be  inconsistent 
with  eminence  in  commerce  any  more  than  the  gratification 
of  a  taste  for  literature  ?  Yet  how  many  men,  honored  on 
our  exchanges  or  in  our  assemblies,  are  devoted  also  to  the 


The  Character  of  Daniel.  235 

prosecution  of  literary  pursuits !  The  noblest  statesman 
that  England  has  seen  for  more  than  a  generation  has  been 
able,  without  at  all  detracting  from  his  eminence,  either  as 
a  financial  reformer  or  as  a  prime  minister,  to  find  time  for 
the  cultivation  of  Homeric  studies,  and  for  the  unearthing 
of  the  designs  of  Vaticanism.  And,  in  our  own  city,  the  pa- 
triarch of  letters  who  is  making  the  writings  of  Homer  into 
American  classics  is  known  also  as  one  of  the  most  suc- 
cessful of  newspaper  editors.  If,  therefore,  men  may  culti- 
vate the  head  without  entailing  upon  themselves  a  business 
failure,  why  may  they  not  also  cultivate  the  heart  ? 

But,  more  than  this,  the  very  duties  of  business  furnish 
an  opportunity  for  the  fostering  of  religion.  For  what  is 
religion  ?  Is  it  not,  above  all  other  things,  the  science  of 
character?  Is  it  not  the  process  of  self -formation,  ac- 
cording to  the  purest  model,  and  from  the  loftiest  motives  ? 
And  if  that  be  so,  does  not  public  life  give  the  noblest  op- 
portunities for  its  practice  ?  Whatever  we  do,  and  wherever 
we  are,  we  are  making  or  manifesting  character,  and  we  must 
do  so  either  in  the  right  way  or  in  the  wrong.  Religion  is 
the  doing  of  this  in  the  right  way ;  and  if  that  be  incompat- 
ible with  prosperity  in  business,  then  all  I  have  to  say  is,  so 
much  the  worse  for  business.  But  it  is  not  incompatible 
with  business  success.  It  may  not  give  a  rapid  fortune,  in- 
deed, but  that  is  not  a  misfortune  ;  for  these  rapid  fortunes 
often  end  in  the  prison,  or  in  exile.  But  it  has  often  given, 
and  it  will  give  again,  a  solid,  substantial,  and  enduring 
prosperity,  which  no  persecution  can  destroy,  and  no  panic 
can  sweep  away. 

Nor  is  this  all.  Consider  what  religion  does  for  a  man. 
It  brings  him  under  the  influence  of  the  most  powerful  mo- 
tives. As  we  have  seen  already,  it  opens  his  eyes  to  the 
sight  of  the  invisible  God ;  and  so  it  sends  him  to  work  for 
him.     But  is  there  anything  in  that  to  paralyze  industry,  or 


236  Daniel  the  Beloved. 

to  overlay  diligence  ?  Nay,  verily,  he  who  is  doing  busi- 
ness for  God  will  always  be  in  earnest.  His  diligence  in 
business  will  be  a  part  of  his  religion,  and  he  will  enjoy  the 
fulfilment  of  the  proverb,  that  "  the  hand  of  the  diligent 
maketh  rich."  True,  his  religion  will  keep  him  from  all 
double-dealing  and  dishonesty,  and  so  he  may  not  rise  so 
rapidly  as  the  wicked  sometimes  do ;  but  then,  neither  will 
he  fall  so  swiftly  and  ignominiously  as  they.  He  will  go  by 
the  king's  highway,  not  through  any  short  cuts ;  and  if  he 
do  not  reach  the  goal  so  soon  as  others  seem  to  do,  he  is 
saved  from  being  mired  in  the  morass,  in  which  they  shall 
surely  sink. 

Believe  not,  therefore,  my  young  friends,  that  your  alle- 
giance to  God  will  ultimately  interfere  with  your  commercial 
success,  Even  if  it  did,  it  would  still  be  your  duty  to  be 
true  to  him.  But  it  does  not.  God's  providence  is  moral, 
and  if  you  make  a  fair  induction  of  facts,  you  will  find 
that,  other  things  being  equal,  the  religious  man  is  in  the 
end  the  most  prosperous  as  well  as  the  most  happy  of  mer- 
chants. I  know  this  is  a  low  view  to  take  of  it.  But  I 
know,  also,  that  the  assertions  which  I  have  referred  to  are 
made  by  those  who  would  seduce  you  from  the  paths  of  in- 
tegrity; and  therefore  I  have  taken  the  trouble  to  refute 
their  reasonings.  Do  not  allow  yourselves  to  be  led  away 
by  their  plausibilities  ;  probe  them  to  the  bottom ;  examine 
them  with  the  keenest  scrutiny,  and  you  will  remain  true  to 
Christ,  who  has  said  not  only,  "  Blessed  are  the  pure  in 
heart,  for  they  shall  see  God ;"  but  also,  "  Blessed  are  the 
meek,  for  they  shall  inherit  the  earth." 

But  here  we  must  conclude.  We  have  had  great  enjoy- 
ment in  tracing  the  history  and  studying  the  prophecies  of 
this  man  of  God.  We  have  learned  to  know  his  principles, 
and  he  has  taught  us  to  know  our  Christ  as  "  the  King  of 
kings  and  Lord  of  lords."     Let  us  pray  for  his  faith,  and  let 


The  Character  of  Daniel.  237 

us  cultivate  his  devotional  spirit.  Then  we  shall  be  able  to 
manifest  his  firmness  in  the  face  of  temptation,  and  to  prac- 
tise his  diligence  in  the  details  of  common  life.  Let  us  car- 
ry his  business  energy  into  our  religious  duties,  and  his  de- 
vout spirit  into  our  business  transactions.  Let  us  live  as  he 
did,  as  seeing  him  who  is  invisible,  saying,  with  the  noble 

poet, 

"All  is,  if  we  have  grace  to  use  it,  so 
As  ever  in  the  great  Task-master's  eye," 

and  then  we,  too,  "  shall  stand  in  our  lot  at  the  end  of  the 
days." 


INDEX. 


Abercrombie's  "  Intellectual  Powers  "  quoted  from,  29,  ^o. 

Abstinence  from  strong  drink  enforced,  20-22,  94-96,  160. 

Accusation  not  always  an  endorsement  of  excellence,  118. 

Alexander  the  Great,  founder  of  the  Grecian  Empire,  42  ;  chief  victories 
of,  146 ;  death  of,  148  ;  partition  of  empire  of,  149,  192. 

Alexander,  W.  L.,  D.D.,  Kitto's  "Cyclopaedia"  by,  quoted  or  referred 
to,  90,  173, 

Angels,  reality  of  the  ministry  of,  169  ;  over  earthly  kingdoms,  187. 

Antichrist  of  the  New  Testament,  200. 

Antiochus  Epiphanes,  the  little  horn  on  the  head  of  the  goat,  152  ;  char- 
acter of,  152;  cruelty  of,  to  the  Jews,  153  ;  death  of,  157,  214;  his- 
tory of,  foretold  to  Daniel,  196-198 ;  desolation  of  the  Temple  by, 
213. 

the  Great,  wars  of,  with  Egypt,  194;  conquered  by  the  Romans, 

196. 

Theos,  193, 


Artaxerxes  Longimanus,  decree  of,  172. 

Ashpenaz  chooses  Daniel  and  his  friends  for  special  training,  11 ;  ap- 
plied to  by  Daniel,  in  reference  to  the  unclean  diet,  15. 

Auberlen,  Carl  A.,  "  Daniel  and  the  Revelation,"  quoted  from  or  referred 
to,  35,  125,  188,  193,209,224. 

Babylon,  description  of,  7;^  ;  taken  by  Cyrus,  102. 

Babylonian  Empire  described,  126,  127. 

Barnes,  Rev.  Albert,  "  Notes  on  the  Book  of  Daniel,"  quoted  from  or 

referred  to,  8,  45,  47,  iir,  198,  207. 
Bear,  the,  of  Daniel's  vision  explained,  127. 
Beast,  a,  the  appropriate  symbol  of  a  great  empire,  136. 
Beasts,  the  four,  vision  of,  explained,  126-13 1. 
Belshazzar,  difficulty  relating  to,  explained,  90-92  ;  character  of,  92  ; 

feast  of,  93  ;  profanity  of,  96-9S  ;  supernatural  condemnation  of,  98 ; 

visit  of  Daniel  to,  99  ;  death  of,  102. 
Berenice,  daughter  of  Ptolemy  Philadelphus,  193. 
Brougham,  Henry,  Lord,  autobiography  of,  quoted  from,  28. 


240  Index. 

Calvin,  John,  "  Commentary  on  Daniel,"  quoted  from  or  referred  to, 

13,  129,  157. 
Captivity  of  the  Jews,  history  of,  S-10  ;  three  instahnents  of,  10. 
Christ,  kingdom  of,  superhuman  in  its  origin,  49,  140 ;  feeble  in  its  be- 
ginnings, 50 ;  gradual  in  its  progress,  51  ;  universal  in  its  extent,  53  ; 

eternal  in  its  duration,  54 ;  different  from  earthly  kingdoms  in  the 

matter  of  its  rewards,  218. 
Cleopatra,  daughter  of  Antiochus  the  Great,  195. 
Closet,  devoutness  of  Daniel  in  the,  228 ;  necessity  of  earnestness  in, 

now,  230. 
Coincidences  in  the  recurrence  of  the  date  of  three  years  and  a  half,  212. 
Coleridge,  Samuel  Taylor,  curious  experience  of,  in  the  comi^osition  of 

"  Kubla  Khan,"  30,  31. 
Condition  of  the  world  before  the  advent  of  Christ  an  argument  for  the 

divine  origin  of  the  Gospel,  140. 
Conformity  to  the  world,  evil  of,  160. 
Conscience,  duty  of  adhering  to,  18,  120;  liberty  of,  an  inalienable  right, 

66. 
Cowles,  Henry,  D.D.,  "  Ezekiel  and  Daniel,  with  Notes,"  quoted  from 

or  referred  to,  171,  198. 
Cowper,  William,  quoted  from,  69,  137. 
"  Critical   and  Experimental  Commentary,"  by  Jamieson  :  Fausset  & 

Brown,  referred  to,  214. 
Cruelty  of  earthly  empires,  136-139. 
Cyrus,  King,  founder  of  Persian  Empire,  41  ;  takes  Babylon,  IC2  ;  edict 

of,  regarding  Jerusalem,  172. 

Daniel,  Book  of,  authenticity  of  the,  7  ;  two  divisions  of  the,  123. 

Daniel,  captivity  of,  10  ;  age  of,  when  carried  away,  11  ;  education  of,  11 ; 
chosen  by  Ashpenaz  for  special  training,  11 ;  refuses  the  food  pro- 
vided for  the  students,  13  ;  applies  to  Ashpenaz  for  relief,  15  ;  recov- 
ers Nebuchadnezzar's  dream,  33,  40 ;  parallel  between,  and  Joseph, 
34,  223  ;  interprets  the  vision  of  the  composite  image,  41-43  ;  proba- 
ble absence  of,  from  Dura,  when  the  colossal  image  was  set  up,  65  ; 
interprets  Nebuchadnezzar's  second  dream,  76  ;  fidelity  of,  86  ;  reads 
the  mystic  writing  to  Belshazzar,  100  ;  elevated  by  Darius  to  the 
chief  place  in  the  empire,  105  ;  an  object  of  envy  to  the  princes,  106; 
faithfulness  of,  to  his  religious  convictions,  112;  consigned  to  the 
lions'  den,  116;  delivered  by  God's  angel,  116;  first  vision  of,  124- 
126;  second  vision  of,  144-163;  concern  of,  for  Jerusalem,  164; 
study  of  the  Word  of  God  by,  165  ;  last  glimpse  of,  1S4 ;  occasion 
of  his  mourning  by  the  banks  of  the  Hiddekel,  184;  parallel  between, 
and  the  Apostle  John,  223  ;  early  piety  of,  224-227  ;  devoutness  of, 
in  the  closet,  228  ;  success  of,  in  business,  229  ;  decision  of  character 
in,  231  ;  faith  of,  232  ;  diligence  of,  in  business,  233. 

Darius  Hystaspis,  edict  of,  172  ;  referred  to  in  one  of  the  visions,  191. 


Index.  241 

Darius  the  Mede,  questions  concerning,  92,  105  ;  divides  the  empire  into 
provinces,  105  ;  makes  a  decree  forbidding  prayer,  except  to  himself, 
for  thirty  days,  109;  weakness  of,  114  ;  decree  of,  after  Daniel's  de- 
liverance, 117. 

Dates,  striking  coincidences  in,  212. 

Decision  of  character,  value  of,  120,  231. 

Development  gradual,  in  prophecy  and  revelation,  181. 

Development,  moral,  of  the  empires  downward,  138. 

Dreams,  popular  ideas  of,  among  the  ancients,  26  ;  God's  providence  in, 
77  ;  instances  of,  28 ;  forgotten,  instances  of,  29,  31. 

Eadie,  John,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  "  Cyclopasdia  "  of,  quoted  from,  73. 
Early  piety,  of  Daniel,  224  ;  not  associated  with  mental  weakness,  225  ; 
not  necessarily  connected  with  early  death,  226. 

Fairbairn's  "  Imperial  Bible  Dictionary  "  quoted  from  or  referred  to, 

58,  90. 
Faith  in  the  invisible  essential  to  our  getting  full  benefit  from  God's 

Word,  203. 
Favorite  texts,  202. 
Fiery  furnace  described,  62. 
Foreknowledge  of  God  and  human  freedom,  190. 
Friendship,  faithful,  illustration  of,  38. 

Gibbon's  "  History  of  the  Decline  and  Fall  of  the  Roman  Empire " 
quoted  from,  44,  45. 

Goat,  a  one-horned,  the  symbol  of  the  Macedonian  Empire,  145,  146. 

God,  care  of,  for  his  people,  22  ;  grace  of,  given  to  support  his  people  in 
suffering,  69 ;  supremacy  of,  over  the  nations,  88 ;  faithfulness  of,  to 
his  threatenings  as  well  as  promises,  103  ;  people  of,  not  exempt  from 
accusation,  118 ;  is  in  history,  176  ;  is  in  the  Bible,  176  ;  is  in  Christ, 
178;  prepares  his  people  for  special  trial  by  special  grace,  201. 

Gospel,  the,  is  the  hope  of  the  world,  142. 

Gratitude,  illustration  of,  127. 

Grecian  Empire,  the,  42,  127. 

Habit,  influence  of  one  evil,  15S. 

Hamilton,  Patrick,  martyrdom  of,  and  its  effect,  70. 

Hebrew  youths,  the  three,  refuse  to  worship  Nebuchadnezzar's  image, 

62-64 ;  cast  into  the  fiery  furnace,  64 ;  had  with  them  one  like  unto 

the  Son  of  God,  65. 
He-goat  in  Daniel's  vision  explained,  145. 

Henry,  Matthew,  "Commentary"  of,  quoted  from  or  referred  to,  83,  198. 
Hereafter,  the  development  of  now,  216. 
Homer's  idea  of  dreams,  27. 
Hope,  the,  of  the  suffering  saint,  214. 

II 


242  Index. 

Horn,  the  little,  on  the  head  of  the  fourth  beast,  131  ;  on  the  head  of  the 

goat,  150-152. 
Humility  illustrated  by  Daniel,  37. 

Insanity  of  Nebuchadnezzar,  77-80  ;  modern  treatment  of,  80. 

Inscription,  Standard,  quotation  from,  74,  81. 

Intemperance,  evils  of,  94. 

Intolerance  in  religion  condemned,  66,  67  ;  how  it  is  to  be  met,  68. 

Jehoahaz,  King  of  Judah,  deposition  of,  8. 

Jehoiachin  carried  to  Babylon,  10. 

Jehoiakim,  King  of  Judah,  conquered  by  Nebuchadnezzar,  9  ;   rebels 

against  Nebuchadnezzar,  9  ;  death  and  burial  of,  9. 
Jerusalem  taken  by  Nebuchadnezzar,  9 ;  taken  by  Nebuzar-adan,  10  ; 

taken  by  Antiochus  Epiphanes,  153  ;  destroyed  by  the  Romans,  175. 
John  the  Apostle,  parallel  between,  and  Daniel,  223. 
Joseph,  parallel  between,  and  Daniel,  34,  223. 
Josephus  quoted  from,  156. 
Josiah,  King  of  Judah,  death  of,  8. 
Jupiter  Olympus,  idol  of,  set  up  by  Antiochus  Epiphanes  in  the  Temple, 

154,  156. 

Kingdom  of  the  Messiah,  46-55  ;  superhuman  in  origin,  49,  140-142  ; 

feeble  in  beginning,  50;  gradual  in  progress,  51  ;  universal  in  extent, 

53  ;  eternal  in  duration,  54  ;  honors  of,  different  from  those  of  earthly 

kingdoms,  218. 
Kingdoms,  earthly,  have  beasts  as  their  appropriate  emblems,  136 ;  give 

their  honors  to  destroyers,  218. 
Kitto,  John,  D.D.,  "  Daily  Bible  Readings,"  quoted  from,  12,  13. 
Knowledge  increased  by  travel,  211. 

Lange's  "Commentary"  referred  to,  195. 

Laodice,  wife  of  Antiochus  Theos,  193. 

Leopard,  winged,  in  Daniel's  vision,  explained,  127. 

Liberty,  human,  and  divine  foreknowledge,  190. 

Liberty  religious,  principles  of,  71. 

Lion,  winged,  in  Daniel's  vision,  explained,  126. 

Lions,  den  of,  described,  no. 

Luther,  Martin,  quoted  from,  192. 

Maccab^.us,  Judas,  valor  of,  156 ;  reference  to,  207. 

Maccabees,  martyrs  among  the,  sustained  by  faith  in  the  resurrection,  210. 

Martyrology,  English,  incident  in,  216. 

Milman,  Dean,  "History  of  the  Jews,"  referred  to,  154,  156,  199. 

Milton,  John,  quoted  from,  237. 

Musical  instruments  used  in  the  time  of  Nebuchadnezzar,  61. 


Index.  243 

Napoleon  I.,  words  of,  concerning  Christ,  55. 

National  sins  followed  by  divine  retribution,  i6. 

Nebuchadnezzar,  victory  of,  over  the  Egyptians,  9  ;  king  jointly  with  his 
father,  24,  25  ;  dream  of,  forgotten  by  him,  29  ;  requires  the  magicians 
to  recover  and  interpret  his  dream,  31  ;  dream  of,  recovered  and  in- 
terpreted by  Daniel,  33,  41  ;  erects  colossal  image  in  Dura,  56-58 ; 
devotion  of,  to  Bel-Merodach,  60  ;  beautification  of  Babylon  by,  72; 
buildings  of,  74  ;  second  vision  of,  75  ;  insanity  of,  78-80  ;  recovery 
of,  80 ;  supposed  reference  to  his  insanity  in  Standard  Inscription, 
81,  82  ;  decree  of,  regarding  his  insanity,  82. 

Newton,  Bishop,  "Dissertations  on  the  Prophecies,"  quoted  from  or  re- 
ferred to,  131,  150. 

Opposite  of  wrong  not  always  right,  70. 

Palissy,  the  potter,  anecdote  of,  115. 

Peculiarities  of  the  Christian  the  elements  of  his  power,  161. 

Periodicity  a  law  of  our  nature,  230. 

Persian  Empire,  the  breast  and  arms  of  Nebuchadnezzar's  image,  41  ; 
wickedness  of  its  rulers,  42  ;  kings  of,  worshipped  by  their  people, 
109  ;  description  of,  127,  145. 

Pharaoh  Necho,  victory  of,  at  Megiddo,  8. 

Piety,  early,  not  necessarily  connected  with  mental  weakness,  or  business 
failure,  or  early  death,  226-228. 

Power  of  the  enemies  of  God's  people  limited,  162. 

Prayer,  united,  value  of,  35;  toward  Jerusalem,  meaning  of,  112  ;  can- 
not be  prevented  by  human  power,  121  ;  relation  of,  to  God's  prom- 
ises and  prophecies,  166. 

Pride,  warning  against,  84  ;  punishment  of,  89. 

Prideaux,  Dean,  "Connection  of  the  History  of  the  Old  and  New  Tes- 
tament," quoted  from  or  referred  to,  41,  57,  194,  195,  199. 

Profanity,  evil  of,  97. 

Prophecy,  argument  from,  not  sufficiently  considered,  176-178. 

Ptolemies,  dynasty  of  the,  192. 

Ptolemy  Epiphanes  marries  Cleopatra,  daughter  of  Antiochus,  195. 

Euergetes,  193. 

Philadelphus,  193. 

Pusey,  Rev.  E.  B.,  D.D.,  "Lectures  on  Daniel  the  Prophet,"  quoted 
from  or  referred  to,  7,  11,  43,  58,  61,  62,  78,  79,  109,  127,  173-175,  198. 

Ram  in  Daniel's  vision  explained,  145. 
Rawlinson,  Sir  Henry,  quoted  from,  91. 
Reason,  duty  of  thanking  God  for  our,  87. 
Religion  the  science  of  character,  235. 

Religious  intolerance  condemned,  66  ;  how  it  is  to  be  met,  68. 
Resurrection  of  the  dead,  reference  to,  in  the  Book  of  Daniel,  207  ;  Mac- 
cabean  martyrs  sustained  by  faith  in,  210. 


244  Index. 

Retribution  a  law  of  God's  providence,  117. 
Reward  of  the  working  saint,  217. 

Roman  Empire,  the  legs  of  iron  in  Nebuchadnezzar's  image,  43  ;  dete- 
rioration of,  at  the  last,  43,  44 ;  cruelty  of,  138-140. 

Saint,  suffering,  hope  of  the,  214;  waiting,  rest  of  the,  220;  working, 

reward  of  the,  217. 
Scott,  Thomas,  "  Commentary"  of,  quoted  from,  83. 
Seleucidae,  dynasty  of,  192  ;  kingdom  of  a  part  of  the  Greek  Empire,  129. 
Seleucus  Ceraunus,  194. 

Philopator,  196. 

Seventy  heptades,  prophecy  of,  171  ;  fulfilment  of,  174. 

Smerdis  alluded  to  in  one  of  Daniel's  visions,  192. 

Smith's  "  Bible  Dictionary  "  quoted  from  or  referred  to,  10,  58,  61,  74, 

82,  90. 
Society  of  Friends,  members  of  the,  pioneers  in  religious  liberty,  68. 
"  Speaker's  Commentary"  referred  to,  1S8,  193,  195,  198. 
Spenser,  Edmund,  quoted  from,  170. 
Spirit-world,  nearness  of  the,  168. 
Standard  Inscription  referred  to,  74,  81. 
Stanley,  A.  P.,  Dean,  quoted  from  or  referred  to,  198,  200. 
State,  province  of  the,  defined,  67  ;  duty  of  the,  in  religious  matters,  71. 
Stone,  kingdom  of  the,  45. 
Suffering  always  to  be  preferred  to  sin,  120. 
Suffering  saint,  hope  of,  214. 

Temperance,  value  of,  20. 

Tennyson,  Alfred,  quoted  from,  loi,  223. 

Texts,  favorite,  202. 

Too  late,  sadness  of  being,  loi. 

Tregelles,  S.  P.,  "  Remarks  on  the  Prophetic  Visions  of  the  Book  of 

Daniel,"  quoted  from,  46,  151,  223. 
Trollope,  Anthony,  quoted  from,  140. 
Tytler,  Alexander  Eraser,  "  Elements  of  General  History,"  quoted  from, 

149. 

Vision  of  the  four  beasts,  126-135  ;  of  the  ram  and  the  he-goat,  144- 
157 ;  on  the  banks  of  the  Hiddekel,  184. 

Walton,  Izaak,  "  Complete  Angler,"  Bohn's  edition  of,  quoted  from,  78. 

Washington  treaty,  the,  a  new  thing  in  diplomacy,  136. 

Weeks,  seventy,  prophecy  of,  170-174. 

Westminster  divines,  episode  in  the  history  of,  35. 

Whittier,  J.  G.,  quoted  from,  216. 

Wordsworth,  William,  quoted  from,  229. 

Working  saint,  reward  of  the,  217. 


Index.  245 

Xerxes  referred  to,  191. 

Zedekiah  made  King  of  Judah  by  Nebuchadnezzar,  10 ;  carried  into 

Babylon,  lo. 
Zeuxis,  illustration  from,  217. 
Zoanthropia  described,  78. 


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Residence.  A  Book  for  Travellers  and  Settlers.  Illustrated.  8vo, 
Cloth,  $2  50. 

NORDHOFF'S  NORTHERN  CALIFORNIA,  OREGON,  AND  THE 
SANDWICH  ISLANDS.  Northern  California,  Oregon,  and  the  Sand- 
wich Islands.      By  Charles  Nordiioff.      Illustrated.      8vo,  Cloth, 

$2  50. 

PARTON'S  CARICATURE.  Caricature  and  Other  Comic  Art,  in  All 
Times  and  Many  Lands.  By  James  Partox.  AVith  203  Illustrations. 
8vo,  Cloth,  Gilt  Tops  and  uncut  edges,  $5  00. 

*RAWLTNSON'S  MANUAL  OF  ANCIENT  HISTORY.  A  Manual 
of  Ancient  History,  from  the  Earliest  Times  to  the  Fall  of  the  Western 
Empire.  Comprising  the  History  of  Clialdaja,  Assyria,  l\Iedia,  Baby- 
Ionia,  Lydia,  Phoenicia,  Syria,  Juda;a,  Egypt,  Carthage,  Persia,  Greece, 
Macedonia,  Parthia,  and  Rome.  By  George  Rawlinson,  M.A., 
Camden  Professor  of  Ancient  History  in  the  University  of  Oxford. 
12mo,  Cloth,  $1  4G. 

NICHOLS'S  ART  EDUCATION.  Art  Education  applied  to  Industry. 
By  George  Ward  Nichols,  Author  of  "The  Story  of  the  Great 
March."     Illustrated.     8vo,  Cloth,  f  4  00. 

BAKER'S  ISMAILi'A.  Ismailia:  aNarrativeof  the  Expedition  to  Cen- 
tral Africa  for  the  Suppression  of  the  Slave-trade,  orgatdzed  by  Ismail, 
Khedive  of  Egypt.  By  Sir  Samuel  White  Baker,  Pasha,  F.R.S., 
F.R.G.S.  With  Maps,  Portraits,  and  Illustrations.  8vo,  Clotli,  $5  00; 
Half  Calf,  $7  25. 

BOSWELL'S  JOHNSON.  The  Life  of  Samuel  Johnson,  LL.D.,  in- 
cluding a  Journal  of  a  Tour  to  the  Hebrides.  By  James  Boswell, 
Esq.  Edited  by  John  Wilson  Croker,  LL.D..  F.R.S.  With  a  Por- 
trait of  Boswell.  2  vols.,  8vo,  Cloth,  ii;4  00  ;  Slieep,  $5  00  ;  Half  Calf, 
SS  50. 


6     Valuable  a7id  Interesting  Works  for  Public  and  Private  Libraries. 

VAN-LENNEP'S  BIBLE  LANDS.  Bible  Lands :  their  Modern  Cus- 
toms  and  Manners  Illustrative  of  Scripture.  By  the  Kev.  Henry  J. 
Van-Lennep,  D.D.  Illustrated  with  upward  ot'^riOWood  Engravings 
and  two  Colored  IMaps.  838  pp.,  8 vo,  Cloth,  $5  00;  Sheep,  $G  00; 
Half  Morocco,  $8  00. 

VINCENT'S  LAND  OF  THE  WHITE  ELEPHANT.    The  Land  of 

the  White  Elepliant :  Sights  and  Scenes  in  Southeastern  Asia.  A  Per- 
sonal Narrative  of  Travel  and  Adventure  in  Farther  India,  embracing 
the  Countries  of  Burma,  Siam,  Cambodia,  and  Cocliin-China  (1871-2). 
By  Frank  Vincent,  Jr.  Illustrated  with  Maps,  Plans,  and  Woodculs. 
Crown  8vo,  Clotii,  $3  50. 

SHAKSPEARE.  The  Dramatic  Works  of  William  Shakspeare.  With 
Corrections  and  Notes.  Engravings.  G  vols.,  12mo,  Clotli,  $9  00.  2 
vols.,  8vo,  Cloth,  $4  00;  Sheep,  $5  00.  In  one  vol.,  8vo,  Sheep, 
$4  00. 

SMILES'S  HISTORY  OF  THE  HUGUENOTS.  The  Huguenots: 
their  Settlements,  Chtu-clies,  and  Industries  in  England  and  Ireland. 
By  Samdel  Smiles.  With  an  Appendix  relating  to  the  Huguenots  in 
America.     Crown  8vo,  Cloth,  $2  00. 

SMILES'S  HUGUENOTS  AFTER  THE  REVOCATION.  The  Hu- 
guenots in  France  after  the  Revocation  of  the  Edict  of  Nantes  ;  with  a 
Visit  to  the  Country  of  the  Vaudois.  By  Samuel  Smiles.  Crown 
8vo,  Cloth,  $2  00, 

SMILES'S  LIFE  OF  THE  STEPHENSONS.  The  Life  of  George 
Stephenson,  and  of  his  Son,  Robert  Stephenson ;  comprising,  also,  a 
History  of  the  Invention  and  Introduction  of  tlie  Railway  Locomotive. 
By  Samuel  Smiles.  With  Steel  Portraits  and  numerous  Illustrations. 
8vo,  Cloth,  $3  00. 

SQUIER'S  PERU.  Peru  :  Incidents  of  Travel  and  Exploration  in  the 
Land  of  the  Incas.  By  E.  Geokge  Squier,  M.A.,  F.S.A.,  late  U.  S. 
Commissioner  to  Peru," Author  of  "Nicaragua,"  "Ancient  Monuments 
of  Mississippi  Valley,"  &c.,  &c.    With  Illustrations,    8vo,  Cloth,  $5  00, 

STRICKLAND'S  (Miss)  QUEENS  OF  SCOTLAND.  Lives  of  the 
Queens  of  Scotland  and  English  Princesses  connected  with  the  Regal 
Succession  of  Great  Britain.  Bv  Agnes  Strickland.  8  vols.,  12mo, 
Cloth,  $12  00  ;  Half  Calf,  $20  00, 

THE  "CHALLENGER"  EXPEDITION.  The  Atlantic:  an  Account 
of  the  General  Results  of  the  Exploring  Expedition  of  H.  M.S.  "Chal- 
lenger." By  Sir  Wyville  Thomson,  K.C.B.,F.R.S.  With  numer- 
ous Illustrations,  Colored  Maps,  and  Charts,  from  Drawings  by  J.  J. 
Wyld,  engraved  by  J.  D.  Cooper,  and  Portrait  of  the  Author,  engraved 
by'C.  H.  Jeens,     2  vols.,  8vo.     {In  Press.) 

BOURNE'S  LIFE  OF  JOHN  LOCKE.  The  Life  of  John  Locke,  By 
H.  R.  Fox  Bourne.  2  vols.,  8vo,  Cloth,  uncut  edges  and  gilt  tops, 
$5  00, 


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